ANC convenes urgent NEC meeting after Phala Phala ruling

The African National Congress has convened an urgent special National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in Cape Town for Tuesday night as the party confronts the political fallout from a landmark Constitutional Court ruling linked to the Phala Phala saga and its implications for President Cyril Ramaphosa.

ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula confirmed the emergency meeting in a memo to NEC members, stating that the gathering will focus on the apex court's judgment and its impact on parliamentary impeachment processes.

"This serves to invite you to a special NEC meeting to be held on Tuesday ... for a briefing by the national officials, following the ConCourt verdict on the Phala Phala matter," Mbalula wrote.

He added that attendance is compulsory, with NEC members expected to receive what he described as a "deliberate briefing" from the party's top leadership.

The urgent meeting follows intense consultations within the ANC over the weekend and into Monday, as senior party figures sought legal and political guidance on how to respond to the ruling.

The discussions reportedly involved key parliamentary leaders, including National Assembly Speaker Thoko Didiza and ANC chief whip Mdumiseni Ntuli.

According to senior party insiders, the ANC has been consulting legal experts, including advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi, as it assesses its options following what has been described as a politically significant Constitutional Court judgment.

The ruling found that a parliamentary rule used to halt impeachment proceedings was unconstitutional and invalid, and set aside the National Assembly's December 2022 decision that blocked an independent panel's recommendation for a full impeachment inquiry into Ramaphosa.

The court further held that where an independent panel finds sufficient evidence of serious misconduct, Parliament is required to proceed to a full impeachment inquiry rather than terminate the process at an early stage.

The judgment has revived scrutiny over the Phala Phala matter and effectively reopened the possibility of impeachment proceedings against the president.

Party insiders say one option under consideration is for Ramaphosa to seek judicial review of the panel's findings, while others suggest the ANC may attempt to influence the terms of reference for any impeachment committee established in Parliament.

However, such moves are expected to face resistance from opposition parties, who have long argued for a full and transparent inquiry into the allegations.

The NEC meeting is expected to be a critical moment for the ANC as it attempts to manage internal divisions and chart a response to a ruling with far-reaching constitutional and political consequences.