JASON BURKE|
IT has been a busy week for Cyril Ramaphosa, South Africa’s affable president. He has called on his 60 million countrymen to remember the legacy of Nelson Mandela, spoken to an investment forum held in the “richest square mile in Africa”, and led generous tributes to a senior official from the ruling African National Congress.
None of this will have stretched the veteran politician, who was jailed by South Africa’s apartheid regime and was once seen as Mandela’s heir. But one small news item might: Ramaphosa was threatened last week with a subpoena by a public watchdog probing a scandal that could pose a serious threat to his presidency.
“He’s been pushed into a corner. This is a grenade thrown into his political career,” said Ralph Mathekga, a South African political analyst and author.
The astonishing details of what local media have called “Farmgate” have leaked over months, embroiling
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