CAPE TOWN — South Africa’s Constitutional Court ruled in May 2026 that Parliament must form an impeachment committee to investigate President Cyril Ramaphosa over the Phala Phala cash scandal. The court found that Parliament’s 2022 vote rejecting an independent panel’s report on the matter did not follow proper procedure and must be set aside.

The scandal involves approximately $580,000 in U.S. banknotes that were hidden in a sofa at Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala game farm and stolen in February 2020, a year after he won re-election. The theft was not disclosed publicly until 2022, when a former head of South Africa’s state security agency reported it to police and accused Ramaphosa of money laundering and other offenses.

Ramaphosa acknowledged the theft but denied wrongdoing, stating he reported it to the head of his police protection unit at the time. He said the cash came from “the legitimate sale of buffaloes at his ranch.” He also stated that a staff member placed the money under the cushions of a sofa in a spare bedroom because they were concerned other workers had access to a safe.

An independent panel appointed by Parliament investigated the incident and found initial evidence of serious misconduct by Ramaphosa, including failure to properly report the theft, unclear source of funds, and possible underreporting of the amount stolen. The panel also alleged that Ramaphosa used his contacts with the then-president of Namibia to discreetly track down a theft suspect who had fled there, and it recommended a full investigation into his conduct.

In late 2022, Ramaphosa’s African National Congress (ANC) party voted to reject the panel report, blocking impeachment proceedings at the time. Two opposition parties then filed a case with the Constitutional Court, arguing the panel’s findings should have triggered the formation of an impeachment committee.

Following the court’s May 2026 ruling, Parliament announced it will form such a committee to determine whether Ramaphosa committed misconduct warranting impeachment. Ramaphosa has stated he will not resign and has filed court papers challenging the panel’s findings, calling them “grave flaws.”

Impeaching Ramaphosa requires at least two-thirds of South Africa’s 400-member Parliament to vote in favor. The ANC lost its outright parliamentary majority in 2024 but retains enough seats to block an impeachment vote. Ramaphosa, 73, is serving his final presidential term, scheduled to end in 2029.