EFF’s Malema
Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema has led a sharp attack on South Africa’s Constitutional Court, claiming it is protecting President Cyril Ramaphosa by delaying a key judgment in the Phala Phala scandal. On Friday, 28 November 2025, the EFF marched to the court in Johannesburg and handed over a memorandum demanding the immediate release of the ruling. The party says the one-year wait since the case was heard is unacceptable and erodes public trust in the judiciary. This comes amid growing frustration over what the EFF calls a failure to uphold constitutional supremacy, with Malema and supporters accusing the court of bias towards the powerful.
The march drew hundreds of red-clad EFF members, who chanted slogans calling for justice and accountability. Malema, speaking at the event, described the delay as a “deliberate act to shield Ramaphosa” and vowed to keep pushing until the judgment is out. Chief Justice Mandisa Maya has responded that there is no sinister motive, blaming a heavy backlog, but the EFF dismisses this as an excuse.
The Memorandum’s Key Demands and Accusations
In the memorandum addressed to Chief Justice Mandisa Maya, the EFF expressed profound dissatisfaction with the court’s year-long delay in handing down the Phala Phala judgment. They argue that this hold-up creates a crisis of confidence in the judiciary and casts doubt on the principle that all people, regardless of office, are equal before the law.
The document demands the immediate release of the long-reserved judgment, warning that continued silence undermines constitutional rights, public trust, and judicial integrity. “The continued withholding of the Phala Phala judgment creates the perception that the Constitutional Court is unwilling to confront the President and that the Head of State is effectively above the law,” the memorandum states. It adds that each day without a ruling deepens public suspicion and weakens the credibility of the courts.
The EFF also criticises Parliament for rejecting a Section 89 Panel report without debate and refusing a secret ballot, calling it a constitutional violation that prioritised party loyalty over duty. They urge the court to reconduct the impeachment process lawfully, with proper debate and a secret ballot, so MPs can decide without coercion.
Background to the Phala Phala Scandal
The Phala Phala matter stems from a 2020 theft at President Ramaphosa’s private farm in Limpopo, where an estimated USD $4 million in foreign currency was stolen. The money, hidden in furniture and never declared to the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) or the South African Revenue Service (SARS) as required by law, was allegedly part of a purported buffalo sale to a Sudanese businessman. However, investigations revealed the animals never left the farm, and the funds were never legally reported, collapsing the explanation under scrutiny.
Instead of reporting the theft to the South African Police Service (SAPS) as mandated by the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act (PRECCA), Ramaphosa used his personal Presidential Protection Unit (PPU) for a secret, unlawful investigation. This involved alleged kidnapping, interrogation, bribery, and cross-border operations to suppress the scandal, protecting his private financial interests in direct violation of the Constitution and the law.
The public learned of the crime in June 2022 when former State Security Agency Director-General Arthur Fraser filed a criminal complaint, exposing the breadth of the illegal cover-up and detailing how the President’s employees conducted operations in Namibia. Parliament appointed an Independent Panel under Section 89 of the Constitution, led by former Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo. The panel found prima facie evidence that Ramaphosa broke the law, violated PRECCA, breached the Constitution, abused state resources, and attempted to hide the crime from formal channels.
Despite this, the African National Congress (ANC) caucus in Parliament blocked accountability by voting to reject the panel’s findings, ignoring calls from the EFF and other parties for a secret ballot that would have allowed MPs to vote without fear of intimidation.
Institutional Failures Highlighted by the EFF
The EFF’s memorandum points to a sequence of failures by key institutions. SARS reported no declaration of the foreign currency yet took no action, despite prosecuting ordinary citizens for far less. The SARB produced a legally illogical report claiming there was “no completed sale,” conveniently sidestepping why undisclosed and undeclared foreign currency was hidden in furniture for years.
The Acting Public Protector released a flawed report absolving the President despite massive contradictions, undermining the office’s purpose. The EFF argues these lapses show how institutions bent to protect Ramaphosa, allowing him to act above the law.
Faced with a Parliament that refused to act constitutionally, the EFF and African Transformation Movement (ATM) approached the Constitutional Court in November 2024. They argued Parliament acted unlawfully and irrationally when it rejected the Section 89 Panel report without debate and refused a secret ballot. The case demonstrated that the Speaker of Parliament violated the Constitution by denying MPs the opportunity to vote independently, and that the National Assembly failed its obligation to hold the Executive accountable.
The Court’s Delay and Public Backlash
The matter was heard by the Constitutional Court on 26 November 2024, but no judgment has been delivered one year later. According to the Norms and Standards for Judicial Officers under Section 165 of the Superior Courts Act, every effort should be made to hand down judgments no later than three months after the last hearing. The EFF calls this timeframe breach a denial of justice, prolonging silence that undermines constitutional rights and public trust.
“This is especially dangerous at a time when serious allegations of corruption in parts of the judiciary have already cast shadows over judicial independence,” the memorandum states. The delay of twelve full months, four times the accepted judicial standard, has shaken the nation’s confidence in the court’s ability to act without fear, favour, or prejudice.
Chief Justice Maya has attributed the delay to the court’s heavy workload and challenges, insisting there is “nothing sinister” about it. However, the EFF views it as incompetence or deliberate political intervention aimed at protecting Ramaphosa.
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