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The African National Congress welcomes the judgment of the Western Cape High Court granting President Cyril Ramaphosa’s application to interdict the continuation of the Section 89 impeachment enquiry pending the determination of his review application.

The ANC respects the independence of the judiciary and welcomes the legal clarity provided by the Court. The judgment affirms that every person, including the President of the Republic, is entitled to approach the courts to protect their constitutional rights and ensure that public processes are lawful, rational and procedurally fair. Exercising this right cannot legitimately be characterised as evading accountability. This paves way for the courts to hear the judicial review application to set aside the Section 89 Panel Report unencumbered.

This judgment has vindicated our conviction of the rights accorded to the President by the Constitution and the principle of equality for before law. The ANC will study the full judgment in detail and give a comprehensive comment in due course.  This judgment removes hurdles to the review application and parallel processes on the Section 89 Panel Report, and an unhindered administration of justice.

The judgment does not diminish the role of parliament in processing the Section 89 Panel Report but provides the President with an opportunity to prosecute the Section 89 Panel Report through the judicial review within his rights provided for by the law. The ANC therefore calls on all parties to respect the judgment, refrain from politically motivated distortions and allow the remaining legal processes to unfold without interference.

The ANC remains committed to constitutionalism, accountability, the separation of powers and the principle that no person is above the law. Equally, no person should be denied the protection of the law or subjected to a predetermined political outcome. 

Issued by the ANC