South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa is facing a full-blown crisis after an internal security report revealed that cash, possibly linked to a heist, was found stuffed inside a sofa at his Phala Phala farm. Sources close to the investigation confirm that the president’s own security team discovered the stash, worth an estimated four million dollars, in February 2020. The report, which I have seen, details how the money was allegedly hidden and then covered up, with the head of the presidential protection unit, Major General Wally Rhoode, resigning under a cloud last year.
The scandal threatens to unravel Ramaphosa’s reputation as a clean crusader against corruption, a narrative he has built his presidency upon. Documents show that the cash was reported to the head of South Africa’s central bank, but no public disclosure was made. Instead, the president’s staff mounted a secret investigation, with the result that the burglars who first stole the cash were never prosecuted. The question every citizen is asking: why did the president not report this to the police?
Ramaphosa’s office has issued a statement denying any wrongdoing, claiming the cash was legitimate proceeds from a cattle sale. But sources within the ruling African National Congress (ANC) tell me that the party is privately panicking. The timing could not be worse. South Africa is already reeling from power cuts, high unemployment and a sluggish economy. The Commonwealth, which prides itself on ethical leadership, is watching closely. A special envoy from the Commonwealth Secretariat is expected in Pretoria this week, and sources confirm that the scandal will top the agenda.
Investigators are now probing whether the cash was linked to state capture, the systemic corruption that plagued the Jacob Zuma era. Ramaphosa came to power promising to clean up that mess. Now his own hands are dirty. One intelligence source told me: “This is not a small thing. This is a president who hid money from heists. If this is true, he’s finished.”
The story is still unfolding. I have a source close to the Hawks, South Africa’s elite crime-fighting unit, who says they are preparing to open a formal investigation. The clock is ticking on Ramaphosa. Will he survive? Or will his presidency become the latest casualty of the corruption that has hollowed out his nation? Watch this space.
