“What did he know and when did he know it?” The famous question about US president Richard Nixon and the burglary at the Democratic Party’s Watergate HQ is useful in considering President Cyril Ramaphosa and the buffalo bills.
Nixon had to resign in the end. Ramaphosa has made it clear he will not. Instead, he will make a review application against the section 89 report that could lead to his impeachment.
Perhaps the president is as remote from his personal financial affairs as he is from what his cabinet ministers are doing. Joining the dots of this very strange affair, let us speculate.
Ramaphosa’s minions sold 20 buffaloes to a Sudanese businessman for about $580,000, asked him to pay cash, then stuffed the banknotes into the furniture, possibly for their own use later.
But in 2020 the money is stolen. Until then, Ramaphosa is unaware that the money has been paid, and in hard cash.
It is hard to believe that Ramaphosa would find nothing strange in being paid the equivalent of R9.58m in notes and using a couch as a bank. Much easier to believe he knew nothing about it at all until it was stolen.
The embarrassment of utter ignorance must be almost as bad as being guilty of some misdemeanour. He has done nothing wrong; he just knows nothing.
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