Durban - A KwaZulu-Natal ANC member, Nkosentsha Madlala Shezi, has entered the fray and opened a case of genderbased violence against President Cyril Ramaphosa in connection with the robbery that allegedly took place at his Phala Phala farm in 2020.
Shezi opened a case against Ramaphosa – of kidnapping, assault and illegal interrogation of a female domestic worker – at the Durban Central Police Station yesterday. Ramaphosa admitted, after charges against him were opened by former intelligence boss Arthur Fraser, that a robbery took place at his farm where a sum of cash was stolen, but no case was opened. The amount was said to be $4 million.
A small group of people led by a staunch supporter of former President Jacob Zuma, Nkosentsha Shezi has gathered outside Durban's Central Police station to open a case against President Cyril Ramaphosa in connection with a robbery in his #PhalaPhalaFarm @SundayTribuneSA pic.twitter.com/4WGjJjbZqG
— Sboniso Mngadi™ (@sbonisomngadi) June 18, 2022
In his affidavit lodged with the Rosebank Police Station, in Johannesburg, Fraser accused Ramaphosa of kidnapping and bribery, alleging that the presitdent had concealed the robbery and briefed the same robbers to keep the incident away from the public.
Shezi, a businessman and chairperson of the ANC’s radical economic transformation grouping, led a peaceful protest outside the police station.
He was accompanied by a small group of ANC supporters, including members of uMkhonto we Sizwe Military Veterans Association (MKVA), who carried placards calling for Ramaphosa’s removal.
Shezi, a supporter of former president Jacob Zuma, has been critical of Ramaphosa, accusing him of using money to be elected as ANC president.
He recounted the Marikana killings, and the CR17 bank statement, saying the president has never been subjected to the justice system. He said he wanted to add charges of gender-based violence after information emerged that a woman, allegedly a domestic helper, was tortured and held against her will as a cover-up of the scandal.
“When the public protector made findings against him (Ramaphosa), he went to court and sealed the bank statement of his ANC presidency campaign.
He knew something was not legit about his funding and that would have exposed the dirty tricks he used to get into the highest office. Ramaphosa was also implicated in the Marikana massacre, but he has never paid for that. I have opened a case of genderbased violence.
It is alleged that on his farm where money was stolen, a woman was captured by a member of the presidential protection unit.
She was interrogated, assaulted and kidnapped, which is a travesty of justice that we cannot tolerate,” he said. Asked why he had opened a case while there was an existing case on the same matter, Shezi dismissed the notion that his action was political retaliation.
He repeatedly called for Ramaphosa to resign, saying he had failed to fight corruption as he promised. Strini Naidoo, chairperson of the citizen’s rights group Real Democracy, also made a statement to the police in support of Shezi’s case. “The man has confessed that the money is his. Who sells animals in cash, let alone foreign currency?” he asked.
SUNDAY TRIBUNE