LETTER: Under a cloud

One could hardly blame President Cyril Ramaphosa for bemoaning the fact that his presidential legacy is being soiled by too many elephants in his room; unwanted and unwelcome controversies that will not go away.

For example, and regardless of the imminent Constitutional Court ruling on the rejection by the ANC parliamentary majority of the conclusion of the independent panel investigating the Phala Phala matter that the “president may have a case to answer”, the curiousness of the unexplained cash-in-couch saga will reflect negatively on his integrity and sense of transparency for the rest of his presidency and long thereafter. As will the receipt of dubious campaign donations, his abundant personal wealth and countless broken election promises.

Likewise, the multitude of actual and alleged misdemeanours and felonies, often corruption related, committed by his own cadres, colleagues and appointees, that are either swept under the carpet or conveniently forgotten or ignored, do little to confirm his own assessment of himself as a president of sound judgment, intolerant of crime and corruption, and committed to accountability and proper prosecutorial processes. There are just too many unsolved cases and unanswered questions that hover over his presidency like a dark cloud.

It remains uncertain that in the time he has left he can take the necessary personal decisions and actions to credibly remove these controversial, ever-present elephants from his room and exit his presidency with a cleaner slate than he currently has.

David Gant
Kenilworth

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