Ramaphosa’s responses over ANC leaked audio to be tabled before Scopa

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s response regarding allegations of public funds being used for ANC campaigns is set to be tabled before the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) next week, Parliament has confirmed.

In a statement released on Friday, Scopa chairperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa confirmed the receipt of Ramaphosa’s answers.

The matter has since been referred to Parliament’s legal services department “to give guidance on certain aspects of the President’s response”, which will then be tabled before Scopa.

“The committee programme has been adjusted accordingly and the president’s response, along with the legal advice, will be tabled before the committee at a committee meeting on Wednesday,” the statement reads.

This comes after Scopa gave Ramaphosa 10 days to account for remarks he made in a leaked audio recording relating public funds being utilised for political campaigns during the ANC’s 2017 Nasrec elective conference.

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In the leaked audio recording, Ramaphosa is heard saying he was “willing to fall on the sword” to protect the ANC, instead of revealing the names of party members who had allegedly used public funds for their political campaigns.

Speaking to the media during the Presidential Golf Challenge in Cape Town, Ramaphosa also confirmed that he has signed his responses to Scopa’s questions.

“I signed [off the responses]. It must be somewhere in the pipeline,” he said.

Ahead of the State of the Nation Address (Sona) on Thursday, Hlengwa said Scopa reserves its right to invite Ramaphosa to appear before the committee to provide more information if it is not satisfied with the president’s responses.

Scopa previously opted against summoning Ramaphosa “because the president has not shown any intention to not cooperate with the committee”.

Scopa mandate

ANC MP and Scopa whip Mervyn Dirks wrote to Scopa in December requesting the committee to summon Ramaphosa to answer questions over the allegations of mismanagement of public funds.

Dirks – who failed to overturn his suspension – argued in his court papers that he was merely performing his oversight role as a member of Parliament by holding the executive to account.

According to a legal opinion penned by chief parliamentary legal adviser, advocate Zuraya Adhikarie, Scopa has the mandate to probe Ramaphosa’s remarks “if, indeed, public funds of any government department or public entity had been utilised for unauthorised purposes”.

The committee, however, cannot “deal with any alleged ethical breaches of the president” because only Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane can determine whether Ramaphosa broke the law, City Press reported.

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Scopa is permitted to call on Ramaphosa to provide information, including records, on the allegations in order to fulfil its oversight mandate.

The committee could also require further information to ascertain which government departments or entities may have channelled funds unlawfully for the purposes alluded to by Ramaphosa in the audio recording.

Furthermore, it is not within Scopa’s mandate to consider Ramaphosa’s conduct or whether he had failed to share information with the Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture, as alleged.

Executive Code of Ethics

Meanwhile, Dirks – who was suspended and is facing disciplinary proceedings – also laid a complaint with the Office of the Public Protector, Busisiwe Mkhwebane, to investigate the matter.

Mkhwebane’s spokesperson Oupa Segalwe confirmed in a statement that the public protector will investigate the alleged breach of the Executive Code of Ethics against Ramaphosa after it received the complaint.

Segalwe further indicated the investigation would be completed within 30 days, in line with the Executive Members Ethics Act 82 of 1998 (EMEA).

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