Johannesburg - President Cyril Ramaphosa returns to to the State Capture Commission on Wednesday where he is expected to give further evidence relating to his role as ANC President.
Ramaphosa, who will appear in person at the Johannesburg Old Council Chambers in Braamfontein, is set to respond to on matters relating to the terms of reference of the commission, including ANC operations.
The commission of inquiry has set aside two days this week for the president to finish his evidence, culminating in three years of oral evidence heard at the commission.
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AFTERNOON SESSION
MORNING SESSION
Ramaphosa is due to finish his evidence as ANC leader and then move on to his role as former deputy president and current head of state.
Ramaphosa was thrust into several politically defining moments in his presidency over the past few weeks as his Cabinet had to deal with the insurrection in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng last month.
His appearance before Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo also comes shortly after Ramaphosa had to act decisively when implementing key Cabinet changes, including replacing the health minister while dealing with the country’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Ramaphosa is expected to take the stand at 9am.
Already at the venue is newly appointed Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele.
Ramaphosa was due back at the inquiry in May, but his appearance was pushed back when Justice Zondo announced its plan to extend the Inquiry.
In June, the commission applied to the High Court to request an extension, until the end of September, to complete its work and provide a report. Justice Zondo said the commission identified five or six more witnesses that needed to be called to give oral evidence last month.
Ramaphosa’s appearance was pushed forward as “it is only proper that the president is the last witness to give evidence”.
Ramaphosa first appeared in April. He told the inquiry that the state capture matter had divided the ANC.
He said the earliest instance when the party got wind of the state capture phenomena was during an ANC national executive committee meeting in 2011.
Ramaphosa said that as other allegations involving the Gupta family surfaced about their involvement in the appointment of government officials, the discussion around state capture dominated ANC NEC meetings.
“The issue of state capture was hugely contested in the ANC and what should be done contributed to divisions in ANC structures including the NEC, government, Parliament and other areas of society,” he said.
Cadre deployment was also criticised for the quality of individuals deployed to certain government positions who might have lacked the needed qualifications, skills and experience to serve.
Ramaphosa said it became apparent that certain appointments were made for ulterior purposes "some time" after they had happened.
kailene.pillay@inl.co.za
Political Bureau