Analysis: South Africa’s Ramaphosa still ANC’s best hope despite scandal

SOUTH Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa is weathering the worst scandal of his presidency thanks to the backing of his party, which is keenly aware its best hope of retaining power at 2024 elections is to keep him as leader.

Battered as his reputation may be by the “Farmgate” affair, Ramaphosa remains the most popular figure in the African National Congress (ANC) and the best placed to reverse last year’s municipal polls that saw the party’s share of the vote drop below half for the first time.

Ramaphosa’s job had been hanging in the balance after an inquiry panel appointed by the speaker of parliament looked into accusations that thieves had stolen large amounts of cash stuffed into furniture at his private game farm in 2020, and that he had failed to report the crime.

The theft raised questions about how Ramaphosa acquired the money and whether he had declared it.

Ramaphosa has denied