South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will appear before the governing African National Congress party’s integrity commission over controversial campaign donations, the ruling party’s deputy secretary said on Sunday, reported Reuters.
“He [Ramaphosa] has made contact with the integrity committee and he will be presenting himself there for a discussion on the CR17 funds,” said ANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte during an interview on eNCA television.
CR17 funds refer to the campaign donations Ramaphosa received in 2017 when he was running for the ANC leadership. Duarte, however, did not reveal when the president would appear before the commission.
Ramaphosa is the first sitting ANC president who will appear before the commission. He has vowed to clean up South African politics since he replaced former president Jacob Zuma. But he has been facing backlash from other ANC members, a section of the party which still remains loyal to Zuma and pushes for Ramaphosa to step down or be recalled.
Last week, former president Jacob Zuma, who is himself facing trial for the multibillion rand arms deal, lashed out at Ramaphosa, accusing him of betraying the ANC with his stance against corruption.
Zuma, whose decade in power was marked by multiple corruption scandals that are still being investigated, accused Ramaphosa of bringing the party into disrepute, a sign of growing divisions within the ANC.
The South African president has launched a probe into reports of corruption in the government’s Covid-19 response, including the diversion of funds meant for protective equipment for Covid-19 medics. It is claimed that funds have also allegedly been embezzled through COVID-19 awareness campaigns.
It is alleged that individuals with connection with the government and the governing African National Congress Party (ANC) have benefited from contracts for supplying goods and services mobilized to contain the spread of COVID-19.
The South African president’s own spokesperson Khusela Diko is currently on leave pending an investigation into COVID-19 procurement by a company linked to her husband.
