South African court pauses Ramaphosa impeachment proceedings

A South African court ruled in favour of President Cyril Ramaphosa's request to pause impeachment proceedings linked to a scandal over foreign currency kept at his ranch.

Ramaphosa had asked the Western Cape High Court to stop a parliamentary impeachment committee from proceeding while the court considers his challenge to a November 2022 report. That report found he may have committed serious violations and misconduct.

Judge Andre le Grange said the respondents were barred from holding a public impeachment hearing until the court decides Ramaphosa's review application.

The matter concerns accusations that Ramaphosa hid from police and tax authorities a 2020 break-in and theft of $580,000 at his Phala Phala farmhouse in Limpopo province. Ramaphosa has denied wrongdoing. He says he reported the break-in to police and that the money came from the sale of 20 buffaloes.

The complaint was filed by a former spy chief and former ally of Ramaphosa's predecessor, Jacob Zuma. The complainant claimed Ramaphosa concealed a robbery involving $4 million from police and tax authorities.

After opposition criticism that he was avoiding accountability, Ramaphosa said after the ruling that he respected judicial independence and the separation of powers. A statement said he would continue to cooperate with accountability processes.

If the impeachment proceedings continue, they would be the first against a sitting South African president. The court is due in September to hear Ramaphosa's bid to overturn the 2022 independent panel report.

The National Assembly previously rejected the panel report in a vote, with Ramaphosa's African National Congress holding a majority, stopping impeachment proceedings at that time. The public prosecutor dropped the charges in 2024. The Constitutional Court overturned the parliamentary vote in May 2026, leading to the creation of the parliamentary impeachment committee.