The cattle auction of President Cyril Ramaphosa at the Phala Phala farm fetched around R21 Million, double the amount recorded at a similar auction last year.

This happened under tight security on Saturday when the President sold several cattle at his farm in Bela-Bela, Limpopo. Even though the media was barred from covering the event and journalists were ordered by the police to move away from the gate of the farm, the Ankole Cattle Breeders Society of South Africa, Jacques Malan said that the media played an important role in the success of the auction. ” Thanks to the media for the propaganda about the Ankole, it just made people focus on the Ankole and how important it is for South Africa,” Malan said.

The farm has not only been in the spotlight because of the auction but also with the revelation of the allegedly kept large sums of money in foreign currency, estimated to be $4 million ((R64 million) “concealed” under a mattress and couches, money stolen at his Phala Phala farm.  It was alleged that the money was allegedly stolen by five Namibians who conspired with his domestic worker in February 2020. Ramaphosa allegedly failed to report the matter to any police. Instead, he allegedly paid the suspects, including his domestic workers, R150 000 each not to reveal the incident to anyone after they were traced and apprehended.

South Africans continue to demand answers from the President over millions in foreign currency alleged to have been stolen as the Reserve Bank’s current exchange control policy stipulates that a resident who receives foreign currency from a non-resident source must offer that currency for sale to an authorised dealer within 30 days. Phala Phala farm saga came to light after former spy boss Arthur Fraser opened a criminal case against Ramaphosa. In his affidavit, Fraser claimed Ramaphosa of concealing the crime and not reporting it to the police. He also stated that he had critical evidence, including images and videos of the robbery.