Businessman Tokyo Sexwale has called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to tell the truth about Phala Phala. As showdowns loom in court and in Parliament regarding the farm scandal, will the truth find a way of coming out somehow in the end?
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The origin of the “cock and bull story” phrase is a bit murky – much like that of the stash of dollars stolen from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s infamous farm.
Some say the English borrowed the saying from the French coq-à-l'âne, a term meaning “jumping abruptly from one disconnected topic to another”. Some say it comes from ancient fables featuring talking animals.
The phrase reminds me of an old Zulu folklore story of Hubhu kaBhejane, a renowned creative storyteller of the King Cetshwayo era. His name had nothing to do with wild animals. Bhejane (rhino) was his father. But the incredible buffalo stories remind me of the renowned chronic liar.
The "cock and bull" phrase was this week used by one of Ramaphosa’s old comrades, Tokyo Sexwale, to dismiss the fairytales about the theft that got him into trouble.
It’s hard to disagree with the former Gauteng premier. The whole tale does indeed sound like a cock and bull story. How can experienced traders and farm managers simply decide to stash millions of rands’ worth of dollars in a couch when they have the means and connections to have it banked or kept safely? Why were the dollars being stashed away in such an amateurish manner?
Regarding Ramaphosa taking the Section 89 report on review, many people have correctly labelled his latest desperate move as pure Stalingrad tactics. But the trouble with delaying the inevitable is that the dark cloud will follow him into retirement and trouble him when he is weaker and more vulnerable.
One thing I found astounding is Ramaphosa's claim that former Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo and his fellow panel members misunderstood their mandate. I think the one who misunderstood his mandate at the time was the president himself. Instead of setting about to renew and clean up the country and the party he leads, he clearly seems to have had other priorities - such as amassing more dollars perhaps.
Another puzzling question about this scandal is why public funds should be used to wage his legal wars when Phala Phala is a private matter.
We are going to have to wait and watch this space. The next few weeks are going to be very interesting indeed. But the truth has a way of coming out somehow in the end.