President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to take the Section 89 Panel report on review must not be used to delay the work of Parliament.
It is his legal right to approach the High Court and the DA respects due process, the courts and the rule of law.
President Ramaphosa should bring any review application with due haste and on an expedited basis, so that the legal position is clarified quickly and this matter is not delayed unnecessarily.
Parliament must also now take urgent legal advice on the implications of the President’s incoming review, including whether it affects the establishment and work of the impeachment committee, or whether the committee may proceed while the review is underway.
Given the serious constitutional consequences of this matter, and the massive public interest in it, Parliament must take the South African people into its confidence by sharing that legal advice once it receives it.
This matter must be handled lawfully, transparently and with the constitutional seriousness it deserves.
The DA will continue to be guided by the Constitution, the rule of law, and the legal position before Parliament.
This remains an ANC-made crisis, rooted in serious unanswered questions about the President’s conduct and the ANC’s long record of shielding its own leaders from accountability.