A political storm is brewing after ActionSA revealed it has finally obtained a long-withheld report by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) into the controversial Phala Phala scandal, and claims damning findings against members of the Presidential Protection Unit (PPU) were ignored for nearly two years.

In a statement released on Friday, ActionSA national chairperson Michael Beaumont said the party had spent over a year fighting to access the report, which was completed in October 2023 but allegedly kept out of the public eye. The report centres on the conduct of security officials tasked with protecting President Cyril Ramaphosa in the aftermath of the burglary at his Phala Phala farm in Limpopo in 2020.

The Phala Phala scandal erupted after it was alleged that a large sum of undeclared foreign currency, reportedly hidden inside furniture, was stolen from the president’s private game farm. Questions were raised about why the theft was not formally reported through standard police channels and whether state resources were improperly used to track down suspects, some of whom allegedly fled across borders.

According to Beaumont, the IPID report makes “serious findings” against Major General Wally Rhoode, who heads the PPU, as well as Constable HH Rekhoto and other officials. Despite the gravity of these findings, Beaumont said no meaningful action has been taken against those implicated.

Among the most serious allegations outlined in the report is that Rhoode and Rekhoto refused to cooperate with IPID investigators, despite being members of the South African Police Service (SAPS), which is legally obligated to comply with such probes. The report further claims that the officers conducted an “unlawful investigation” into the theft without opening an official case docket or informing the National Police Commissioner, raising concerns about a parallel and unregulated operation.

The findings also point to alleged falsification of documents to justify funding the investigation through SAPS resources under the guise of official PPU operations. This included the reported misuse of state funds to fly drivers from Pretoria to Cape Town, despite the availability of local personnel, resulting in irregular expenditure.

Perhaps most controversially, the report alleges that the president’s name was invoked by members of the PPU to pressure law enforcement officials into complying with questionable instructions. It also claims that suspects were interrogated without being informed of their constitutional rights—a violation of South Africa’s legal framework.

In another startling revelation, the report details an unauthorised cross-border engagement in which PPU members allegedly facilitated a meeting with Namibian officials in a remote area near Upington. The meeting reportedly included Dr Bejani Chauke, identified as a presidential envoy, raising further questions about the legality and diplomatic implications of the operation.

Beaumont said the delay in acting on these findings reflects a broader failure of accountability at the highest levels of government. “Both SAPS leadership and the president must now explain why no action has been taken,” he said, adding that the alleged use of the president’s name to shield misconduct deepens the seriousness of the matter.

ActionSA has now escalated the issue to Parliament, confirming that its MPs will formally write to the Portfolio Committees on Police and the Presidency to demand an urgent inquiry into the failure to implement IPID’s recommendations. The party argues that this inaction undermines the rule of law and erodes public trust in state institutions.

The road to accessing the report has itself been contentious. Beaumont said IPID initially delayed ActionSA’s request under the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA), citing technical issues such as email system failures, and later rejected appeals. It was only after the party prepared legal action that Acting Police Minister Feroz Cachalia moved to declassify the document. Even then, ActionSA claims further delays followed before the report was finally released this week.

The party maintains that its pursuit of the report is rooted in the constitutional principle that all citizens are equal before the law. Beaumont accused successive governments, including the current Government of National Unity, of failing to uphold this standard.

As political pressure mounts, the release of the IPID report is likely to reignite debate around the Phala Phala saga, a controversy that has lingered over Ramaphosa’s presidency for years. With calls for parliamentary scrutiny growing louder, the coming weeks could prove pivotal in determining whether accountability will finally follow the explosive findings now in the public domain. IPID was reached for a comment, but at the time of publication, there was no response.