Cyril Ramaphosa looks set to secure re-election at the helm of the ruling African National Congress
Pragmatic, wealthy and ambitious, Cyril Ramaphosa promised “a new dawn” for corruption-ridden South Africa when he became president in 2018.
Today, nearly five years later, his reputation is tarnished by scandal and his political future uncertain.
Earlier this week, the 70-year-old survived the most immediate threat to his tenure as his party shot down an opposition-led attempt to open impeachment proceedings against him.
He now looks set to secure re-election at the helm of the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party — a stepping stone to a second term as state president.
The vanguard of the anti-apartheid struggle once led by Nelson Mandela, the ANC convenes on Friday to elect new leadership.
Ramaphosa is the frontrunner for the top role, but the findings of a special inquiry that he probably broke the law over the alleged cover-up of a burglary, have heightened divisions within the party and emboldened his enemies.
Details about a huge cash haul stolen from his farmhouse have dealt a massive reputational blow to the man who took the reins of Africa’s most industrialised economy on a pledge to root out graft.
Ramaphosa is now in the unenviable position of having his graft-tainted predecessor and party rival Jacob Zuma calling him a “criminal”.
Born on November 17, 1952 in Johannesburg’s Soweto township — the cradle of the anti-apartheid struggle — Ramaphosa had long eyed South Africa’s top job, but only came to it after a long detour.
He took up activism while studying law in the 1970s, and spent 11 months in solitary confinement in 1974.
Ramaphosa turned to trade unionism, one of the few legal ways of protesting the white-minority regime.
– From Mandela to Coca-Cola –
A protege of Mandela, who once described him as one of the most gifted leaders of the “new generation,” Ramaphosa stood alongside the anti-apartheid icon when he walked out of jail in 1990.
He was a key member of the task force that steered the transition to democracy.
But after missing out on becoming Mandela’s successor, Ramaphosa swapped politics for a foray into business that made him one of the wealthiest people in Africa.
He held stakes in McDonald’s and Coca-Cola, making millions in deals that required investors to partner with non-white shareholders.
Ramaphosa developed a passion for breeding rare buffalos and cattle, a business that would come back to haunt him.
The opposition once nicknamed him “The Buffalo” after he bid for an 18-million-rand ($104,000) beast in 2012.
He later apologised for making the glitzy bid “in a sea of poverty.”
In 2012, his image was badly tarnished when police killed 34 striking workers at a platinum mine, where he was then a non-executive director and had called for a crackdown on the miners.
– Covid-19 –
He became Zuma’s vice president in 2014, often drawing criticism for failing to speak out against government corruption.
Renowned for his patience and strategic thinking, Ramaphosa narrowly defeated pro-Zuma rivals to take over leadership of the ANC party in 2017 and then the presidency when Zuma was forced out two months later.
Relaxed at public appearances, he attracts a support base crossing South Africa’s racial and class divides, but still faces strong opposition from inside the ANC.
His anti-corruption drive has yielded some results, with charges being brought against some high-profile figures.
His handling of the Covid health crisis also won praise internationally. But the pandemic dealt a heavy blow to plans to revive South Africa’s sagging economy. Unemployment remains stratospherically high and prolonged power cuts are a deep source of anger.
– Cash under cushions –
Yet it is the accusations that Ramaphosa may be guilty of serious violations and misconduct, for allegedly attempting to conceal a theft at his Phala Phala farmhouse that have most damaged him.
The stolen cash, more than half-a-million dollars stashed beneath sofa cushions, was for 20 buffalo bought by a Sudanese businessman, Ramaphosa said.
The findings have little direct consequence on his upcoming re-election bid. But the stain on his reputation remains.
“His chances of leaving in a dignified manner are minimal,” said analyst Sandile Swana.
