The highly anticipated trial of three accused in the Phala Phala farm robbery has entered a dramatic phase after a state witness revealed how $580,000 in cash was removed from a farm safe and hidden in a sofa at President Cyril Ramaphosa’s private residence. Testifying in the Modimolle Regional Court on Monday, the witness — a former lodge manager at Phala Phala whose identity cannot be revealed for safety reasons — admitted to personally stashing the dollars in a rarely…

The highly anticipated trial of three people accused of stealing millions of rand in foreign currency from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm is finally set to get underway at the Modimolle Regional Court in Limpopo this morning, almost three months later than initially scheduled. The accused — former Phala Phala housekeeper Froliana Joseph, David Joseph, and Namibian national Immanuwela David — face charges of housebreaking, theft, and money laundering. They allegedly conspired to break into the President’s Bela-Bela farm…

In a dramatic political twist just days before Mandela Day, the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) has issued President Cyril Ramaphosa with a formal letter of demand calling for his immediate resignation. The party on Wednesday, 17 July, said Ramaphosa must step down by 09:00 on Friday, 18 July, “in honour of Nelson Mandela, the founding Commander-in-Chief of uMkhonto weSizwe.” The letter, seen by African Times, accuses the President of multiple violations of the Constitution and undermining democratic principles. It follows…

The national chairperson of ActionSA, Michael Beaumont, has warned that his party will take the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) to court if it fails to meet its deadline to release a report on the conduct of the presidential protection unit during the Phala Phala probe. Beaumont said that after ActionSA’s initial application under the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) a month ago, IPID missed its first deadline and instead requested a 30-day extension. This follows ActionSA’s PAIA…

Acting Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka’s legal team has defended the fact that the final report into Phala Phala farmgate ignored evidence that opposition parties submitted to Parliament’s Section 89 panel, which found that President Cyril Ramaphosa had a case to answer. Today Gcaleka absolved Ramaphosa of any wrongdoing, stating that the president did not abuse his power or fail to declare his personal business interests to parliament. Last year, an independent panel appointed by Parliament, led by former Chief Justice…

In what Public Protector advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane has labelled the biggest scandal to hit South African democracy, the suspended Chapter 9 institution leader blamed the death of former Minister of Energy Tina Joemat-Pettersson on “state capture.” Mkhwebane was speaking during her much-anticipated media briefing on allegations that Section 194 chairperson Richard Dyantyi and ANC parliamentary Chief Whip Penny Majodina solicited bribes to make the inquiry go her way. She said the solicitations of the bribes were communicated to her husband,…

FORMER President Thabo Mbeki’s foundation has refused to comment on claims that his leaked letter to ANC Deputy President Paul Mashatile has raised “good points” at the “wrong time” for all the “wrong reasons.” The criticism came at the height of Mbeki’s name having once again taken centre stage on matters concerning incumbent ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa. This time the former statesman has received praise for the leaked letter that he addressed to Mashatile and copied the rest of the…