The Presidency said calls for President Cyril Ramaphosa to step aside over the Phala Phala saga are premature.
Ramaphosa is facing renewed pressure from some in the African National Congress (ANC) and opposition parties to resign amid investigations into the alleged theft of millions of rands from his game farm in Limpopo.
He's accused of concealing the crime, along with a slew of other allegations.
This has continued to put Ramaphosa in a tight spot.
Insiders at the ANC's national executive committee revealed that the party's highest decision-making body spent the weekend deliberating on the Phala Phala scandal.
It's understood that some leaders want Ramaphosa to face the music, while his allies defended him.
If Ramaphosa is recalled as the leader of the party, it could also trigger a leadership vacuum in government.
But the president's spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said the calls for Ramaphosa to step aside were premature.
- Cheeky armed robbers jailed 10 years each
- Power crisis needs practical solutions
- Dangers of Arab Spring in SA
- Zimbabweans fork out US$24m for SA permits
Keep Reading
"Should the president be charged; he will gladly step aside."
Ramaphosa's predecessor, former president Jacob Zuma suffered a similar fate in 2018 - at the height of allegations of corruption.
Magwenya also denied that Ramaphosa's cabinet was at loggerheads following Tourism Minister Lindiwe Sisulu's public criticism of the president over the scandal.
