Cyril Ramaphosa KZN Gauteng riots looting

Image via GCIS/Flickr

Leaked Audio: Will President Ramaphosa be summoned by SCOPA?

SCOPA had given President Cyril Ramaphosa up to 10 days to explain utterances attributed to him in a leaked audio clip

Cyril Ramaphosa KZN Gauteng riots looting

Image via GCIS/Flickr

It’s not certain whether the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) will call President Cyril Ramaphosa to appear and explain utterances attributed to him in leaked audio.

Ramaphosa confirmed on Friday, 11 February 2022, having submitted his response to SCOPA.

“I signed the letter, I don’t know where it is now. It is somewhere in the pipeline. These things take time to happen because they are in the pipeline,” he said.

How we got here: Suspended ANC MP Mervin Dirks had written to SCOPA, requesting that Ramaphosa be investigated, in light of what he says in the recording. It was at then decided that the president would be asked to give his side of the story. In the clip, first obtained by Daily News, Ramaphosa seemingly admits to knowing about public funds being used for the ANC’s leadership campaigns and can be heard saying he would rather fall on his sword over donations to his 2017 campaign for the ANC presidency – than have the public find out about the former. When SCOPA met in January, it wrote to Ramaphosa, asking him to give a written response to questions posed to him, pertaining to the scandal.

ALSO READ: SCOPA sends letter to Ramaphosa over leaked audio

SCOPA: RAMAPHOSA’S RESPONSE REFERRED LEGAL SERVICES

Mkhuleko Hlengwa, who is SCOPA Chairperson, confirmed having received President Cyril Ramaphosa’s written response and said his response would be tabled before the Parliamentary watchdog on Wednesday, 16 February 2022.

“Having studied the contents of the letter from the president, Hlengwa has referred it to the parliamentary legal services to give guidance on certain aspects of the president’s response. 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.”

SCOPA Chairperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa

Public Protector Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane is already set to investigate the audio and determine whether Ramaphosa violated his oath of office. The complaint was lodged by Dirks, who accuses the president of breaching the Executive Code of Ethics.

ALSO READ: JUST IN: Scopa to request Ramaphosa’s written submission over alleged comments in leaked audio