SUPPORT FOR RULING PARTY MIGHT COLLAPSE IF RAMAPHOSA QUITS: SURVEY

JOHANNESBURG: Support for South Africa’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) would likely collapse if President Cyril Ramaphosa leaves office, a survey showed even as his future hung in the balance on Friday.

An urgent meeting of South Africa’s ruling party to discuss Ramaphos’s future was delayed as calls continue for his resignation amid a scandal over money stolen from his farm.

The African National Congress’ national executive committee on Friday had been expected to discuss a parliamentary report which suggests Ramaphosa may have violated anticorruption laws related to the theft in 2020 of millions of dollars that had been stashed in a couch. The committee can force the president to resign, and has done so in the past.

The party’s treasurer-general, Paul Mashatile, told reporters that top ANC officials would discuss the report before reconvening ahead of a parliamentary debate Tuesday. Lawmakers are expected to debate the report and vote on whether to proceed with an impeachment process.

Ramaphosa has denied wrongdoing, saying the stolen money was proceeds from the sale of animals at his farm and that he was “not involved in any criminal conduct.” However, the parliamentary report questions his explanation as well as the source of the money and why it wasn’t disclosed to financial authorities. It cited a potential conflict between the president’s business and official interests.

The survey of 3,200 registered voters was carried out by the Social Research Foundation in July and released on Friday.

Of the survey respondents who said they backed the ANC, almost half stressed that Ramaphosa is a “very important” reason for their continued support. 15% of them said they would support another party if he was no longer in the ANC, while 39% would vote for a breakaway party that backed him.