‘Ramaphosa will go down in history as one of the most useless presidents’ – analyst

Political analyst Prince Mashele has criticised President Cyril Ramaphosa, stating he will be remembered as “one of the worst presidents” in the country’s history.

Mashele was speaking to author and broadcaster Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh in a comprehensive interview about Ramaphosa, Police Minister Senzo Mchunu, the National Dialogue, the Government of National Unity, and DA Federal Chair Helen Zille, among other topics.

‘Missed moment’

Ramaphosa has come under fire for establishing another commission and not firing Mchunu following damning revelations by KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) top cop Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi about alleged political interference in police operations.

Mashele told Walsh, Ramaphosa “missed the moment” to show leadership.

“Cyril Ramaphosa will go down in history as one of the most useless presidents we have had after 1994, and I don’t mince my words, useless. Zuma will go down in history as the most criminal.

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“You see, there is a moment for a leader of a country to show leadership, to lead his nation. Cyril Ramaphosa missed the moment. He was outside. Mkhwanazi told us what he knows. We’re all shocked. We’re expecting that he was going to be decisive, that is, Cyril Ramaphosa. He did not act like a leader, he has completely forgot, forgotten his responsibilities,” Mashele said.

‘Ramaphosa knew’

Mashele claims that Ramaphosa was already aware of the explosive details that Mkhwanazi had revealed.

“A president is the client number one of our intelligence services. They report to the president. The president is supposed to get briefings, intelligence briefings, every single day in the morning before he begins his activities; he’s supposed to be told what is happening in the country. So, there’s absolutely nothing that Mkhwanazi knows that Cyril Ramaphosa does not know,” Mashele said.

“So this idea that there must be a commission of inquiry to investigate, as if the president does not know what is happening, is absolute nonsense. In fact, it’s insulting our intelligence as a society. He knows. He even knows more than what Mkhwanazi knows.

“So there’s absolutely nothing for him to find out. He knows Mchunu is in the pockets of criminals. He knows that, but he cannot act sternly against Mchunu, why? Because he and Mchunu are partners in crime,” Mashele claimed.

“Cyril Ramaphosa will go down in history as one of the most useless presidents we have had after 1994. Zuma will go down in history as the most criminal,” – Prince Mashele. #CyrilRamaphosa @TheCitizen_News pic.twitter.com/P4Rsn7Ax5U

— 𝙵𝚊𝚒𝚣𝚎𝚕 𝙿𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚕 ⚡️ (@FaizelPatel143) July 17, 2025

CR17 ‘dirty money’

Mashele explained the reasons for his damning claims.

“When he [Ramaphosa] became president of the ANC in 2017, Mchunu was the chief campaigner of CR 17 in KwaZulu-Natal. So, all the dirty money that was collected by Cyril Ramaphosa from Bosa, and all manner of dirty money that he went to court to try and protect, the person who was handling that dirty money in KwaZulu-Natal was Mchunu.

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“So Mchunu knows a lot about Cyril Ramaphosa’s dirty money. That’s why Cyril Ramaphosa will never deal with Mchunu seriously,” Mashele said.

No punitive action against Mchunu

On Wednesday, during the presentation of the Presidency budget vote before the National Assembly in Parliament, Ramaphosa said punitive action against Mchunu would set a dangerous precedent.

“These allegations are serious. They are also untested,” Ramaphosa said, in reference to KwaZulu-Natal provincial police commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi’s scathing claims that Mchunu has links to criminal gangs.

“It is therefore necessary that we establish the facts through an independent, credible and thorough process so that we can ensure accountability and safeguard public confidence in the police service,” the president said.

Ramaphosa established a commission of inquiry on Sunday to look into Mkhwanazi’s claims.

Acting Deputy Chief Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga will chair the commission. In the meantime, Mchunu has been placed on leave. Firoz Cachalia will be acting in his place.

Ramaphosa on CR17

In April 2021, Ramaphosa stuck to his guns that he was never privy to the financial records of his 2017 ANC presidential campaign, known as the CR17 campaign.

Taking the stand on day two at the Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture, Ramaphosa reiterated his claim that the CR17 campaign managers took a deliberate decision to shield him from the financial contributions of his donors.

He said this was done in order to protect him from being compromised as a candidate.

When questioned by the commission’s evidence leader, advocate Paul Pretorius, about the controversial R500 000 donation his campaign received from late Bosasa boss Gavin Watson, Ramaphosa said he was not aware of the donation and that the money was solicited by one of his colleagues who was involved in the CR17 campaign.

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“Up to today, I don’t know how those funds have been managed. I did meet some of the people who gave money at dinners to explain precisely what we were seeking to achieve by my candidature and that’s where it ended,” Ramaphosa said.

Ramaphosa suggested that the colleague, whom he did not identify, wanted Watson to personally donate the money, rather than from his corruption-accused company, Bosasa.

‘Insulting South Africans’

Mashele said Ramaphosa establishing a commission of inquiry to probe the allegations against Mchunu is a way to “insult South Africans.”

His analysis criticises Ramaphosa’s Presidency, accusing him of failing to act decisively against Mchunu and appointing an ANC professor as acting police minister during the police minister’s leave of absence.

“So the summary of the story is this: this is the most expensive way of insulting us. He has used our money as a nation to insult us expensively. That’s the gist of it. There’s no other way. If you are fooled by Ramaphosa, you are fooled because you choose to be fooled,” Mashele said

“The last point is this, Einstein said the definition of a fool is someone who does the same thing over and over again, expecting different results. How many commissions of inquiry has the ANC government, even under previous presidents, instituted, and where have the actions been?

“We know the ANC, when they want a problem to disappear, they institute a commission of inquiry in order for the nation’s anger to disappear, and then they move on. This is exactly what Cyril Ramaphosa is doing, he thinks that we are idiots as a nation,” Mashele said.

The Citizen has contacted Ramaphosa’s spokesperson for comment, and this will be added to the story once received.

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