By Simon Nare
President Cyril Ramaphosa has brushed off suggestions that he compromised already strained diplomatic relations between South Africa and the US when he contacted businessman and close US President Donald Trump ally, Elon Musk, outside diplomatic channels.
In an oral question and answer session in the National Assembly on Tuesday, Ramaphosa defended his move to call South African-born Musk privately after Trump issued an executive order and pulled the plug on US aid over the Expropriation Act.
The president was taken to task on why he breached protocol by calling Musk outside diplomatic channels in a telephone conversation organised by the billionaire’s father who is based in South Africa.
EFF leader Julius Malema put it to Ramaphosa that he breached protocol by going down that path and should have instead used diplomatic channels, and by doing so, he undermined International Relations Minister Ronald Lamola.
In his defence, Ramaphosa
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