MK Party accuses Section 89 committee of ‘majoritarian abuse’ after Madonsela appointment reversed

The uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party has accused the Section 89 Impeachment Committee of “majoritarian abuse” after the panel reversed its earlier decision to appoint Advocate Thandazani Madonsela SC as the inquiry’s evidence leader in the Phala Phala matter.

Committee rescinds appointment after formal objection

On Tuesday morning the Section 89 committee, by a majority vote, rescinded Madonsela’s appointment after Parliamentary Legal Services reviewed a formal objection lodged by President Cyril Ramaphosa. The committee has given 31 members of parliament from 16 political parties until Friday to submit further nominations for a chief evidence leader.

MK Party describes move as partisan and driven by majority

MK Party spokesperson Sifiso Mahlangu criticised the decision as evidence of partisan control by the governing bloc. He said the committee, led by the ANC, the DA and their Government of National Unity partners, had “defeated logic and constitutional purpose through sheer majoritarianism” by reopening an appointment at the request of the subject of the inquiry.

Claims about Madonsela’s disclosures

The MK Party said the facts surrounding Madonsela’s appointment were “clear and undisputed.” The party noted that Madonsela disclosed he had served as Ramaphosa’s representative to the Judicial Service Commission until 2022 and that he supervised a legal opinion provided to the ANC by a junior advocate in June 2026. Parliamentary Legal Services found that disclosure immaterial and not a conflict of interest.

Allegations of manufactured bias and institutional alignment

Mahlangu said ANC committee members had been aware of Madonsela’s disclosures and raised no objections at the time, and that opposition parties also found no conflict. “It was only after Mr Ramaphosa wrote to the committee complaining of possible bias that his party members suddenly wanted to review the appointment,” he said. “This is a manufactured perception.”

He argued the reversal underlined the MK Party’s objection to the committee’s chairperson, saying an independent chair would not have reopened a nomination based on a complaint from the person under investigation. Mahlangu said the move exposed “institutional alignment” in a committee chaired by an ANC nominee, seconded by the DA, and elected by the GNU bloc.

Next steps and possible legal challenge

Mahlangu pointed to the Constitutional Court’s 2026 warning that the impeachment mechanism must not be vulnerable to majoritarian abuse, saying: “That is exactly what happened today.” He said the governing majority had “run roughshod over a legal opinion and over reason to protect its leader,” and that the MK Party, as the official opposition, would not accept the decision. “We reserve all rights, including an urgent legality review, to defend the credibility of this historic accountability process,” he said.