A corruption saga of mammoth proportions involving President Cyril Ramaphosa unfolded in front of our eyes.
Yet his apologists, including some sections of the media, downplay the enormity of this scandal.
Independent Media’s journalists have been the only ones brave enough to let the South African public know the true extent of it.
We did it with Ramaphosa’s CR17 campaign. We did it with the PPE scandal where the tentacles of corruption reached the highest office of the land.
This time we’re doing it with Phala Phala. For our troubles, we are attacked, ridiculed and subjected to a vicious disinformation campaign.
One academic determined to bring us down went so far as to urge advertisers to stop doing business with us, which is an outright attack on media freedom.
Since the Section 89 panel’s Phala Phala report became public last week, Ramaphosa’s backers employed all sorts of tactics to defend the president – a hypocritical head of state who preaches anti-corruption while personally being embroiled in a money laundering investigation.
Ramaphosa’s praise singers in the media deliberately overlook the glaring flaws in his submission to the panel. His submission states a mysterious businessman purchased buffalo from his farm and paid a huge sum in cash, despite no evidence – not as much as an affidavit from the buyer – to confirm this.
No wonder the panel found the way it did. Yet, none of the other media are prepared to report this.
But Independent Media will continue to ensure the public’s right to know the truth. We refuse to look the other way and we shall speak truth to power.
Equally shocking is the silence of the SA Revenue Service and SA Reserve Bank about the millions of dollars stolen from Ramaphosa’s farm.
At the very least, these institutions should help South Africans understand what the laws say about having so much foreign currency in one’s possession. Is this because they are influenced by the president?
Like Ramaphosa, the Hawks also have a case to answer. They have proven that some people are above the law. The entire saga does not bode well for democracy.
The current crisis has been created by the president. It truly is a sad state of affairs.