By Enyichukwu Enemanna
South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa has been cleared of any cover-up following the release of a preliminary report by the country’s anti-corruption agency into a financial scandal that almost cost him his job last year, local media reports say.
Ramaphosa’s spokesman Vincent Magwenya said on Saturday the president received the report, details of which have have been sighted by local media.
The Public Protector said it has notified parties involved on the findings contained in the preliminary report. The anti-corruption watchdog had probed Ramaphosa over the alleged theft of large amounts of cash from his luxury Phala Phala farm.
The president was accused of attempting to hide the crime from the public, stoking suspicion that he may have gotten the cash through corrupt means.
“As stated before, we reiterate that the president did not participate in any wrongdoing, nor did he violate the oath of his office,” Magwenya said according to South African news outlet News24. “Instead, the president was a victim of a crime that he duly reported to the relevant authorities.”
The scandal, which came to public knowledge in June involves about $500,000 in cash, which Ramaphosa admitted were stolen from beneath sofa cushions at his ranch.
The president claimed the money was payment for buffalos bought by a Sudanese businessman from his farm.
He was criticised for failing to report the matter to the police, as well as abusing his powers and exposing himself to a conflict of interest over the affair.
The report exonerates him but found the head of the presidential protection unit to whom Ramaphosa reported the crime acted improperly, investigating the case directly instead of reporting it to the police, according to extracts published by local media outlets.
The findings, which the left-wing opposition Economic Freedom Fighters party described as “nonsensical”, will bring some respite to Ramaphosa, who has been dogged by the allegations for months.
The scandal almost cost him his job and second term bid in December when he narrowly escaped a parliamentary vote of no confidence.
The vote killed the commencement of impeachment procedure against the president and boosted his chances of standing for presidential poll next year.
