Presidency defends dismissal of Andrew Whitfield for ‘breaking' travel rules
Cyril Ramaphosa defends the removal of the deputy minister due to unauthorised international travel.
DA leader John Steenhuisen claims the dismissal was politically motivated and demands that action be taken against ANC ministers facing similar allegations.
The government of national unity shows further signs of strain as the ANC and DA clash over the dismissal.
The removal of Andrew Whitfield as deputy minister of trade, industry and competition has triggered a political standoff between President Cyril Ramaphosa and the DA, highlighting their strained relationship in the government of national unity.
In a statement released on Friday, the presidency defended Ramaphosa's decision to dismiss Whitfield, stating that it was due to a breach of executive rules governing international travel.
According to the presidency, Whitfield travelled to the US earlier this year without obtaining the required permission from the president, a move he described as a 'clear violation' of protocol.
It is a well-established rule that all ministers and deputy ministers must secure approval from the president for any international travel. This was communicated at the start of the seventh administration and reiterated as recently as March in Cabinet.
The presidency
The statement added that this practice had been consistently followed by members of the executive and that Whitfield's actions deliberately disregarded these expectations.
'Mr Whitfield undertook the trip without authorisation, submitted a perfunctory apology after the fact and was well aware of the consequences,' the statement read.
The presidency also cited precedents for this decision, noting that previous presidents, including Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki, had done similarly.
'This is not without precedent,' the presidency said. 'Deputy ministers have been dismissed for the same violation.'
The presidency said Ramaphosa informed DA leader John Steenhuisen of the decision ahead of the formal notification to Whitfield and asked the DA to submit a replacement candidate, as agreed in the coalition arrangement. However, the DA has responded with strong criticism and issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the president.
In a statement made in Parliament on Thursday, Steenhuisen said the DA was not given sufficient time to respond to the decision, claiming the dismissal was politically motivated and a 'calculated attack' on the second-largest party in the coalition.
He accused Ramaphosa of applying a double standard, pointing to ANC ministers who remain in Cabinet despite facing serious allegations of misconduct. Steenhuisen cited Human Settlements Minister Thembi Simelane, Higher Education Minister Nobuhle Nkabane, and Deputy Water and Sanitation Minister David Mahlobo as examples of ministers who had not faced consequences despite their alleged involvement in misconduct.
'This is not about travel protocol. It's about silencing those who stand in the way of questionable decisions,' said Steenhuisen, adding that Whitfield had opposed potentially corrupt appointments and resisted the mismanagement of the Transformation Fund within his department.
The DA leader warned that if Ramaphosa failed to act against ANC ministers implicated in wrongdoing within 48 hours, the consequences for the coalition would be significant.
'What happens next is entirely on the ANC and President Ramaphosa,' he said.
Responding to the DA's position, the presidency expressed dismay at what it described as 'intemperate reactions' and 'unjustifiable threats'. It said the DA's framing of Whitfield's removal as political victimisation was misleading and ignored the facts.
There is no basis to claim that the dismissal was for any reason other than his failure to follow rules. The president shall not yield to threats and ultimatums.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump's winning at the Supreme Court. Justice Jackson warns about 'troubling message'
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump is on a winning streak of getting quick assistance from the Supreme Court after lower courts have put the brakes on his policies. That's prompted one of the three liberal justices to write that the court is sending a 'troubling message" that it's departing from basic legal standards for the administration. 'It is particularly startling to think that grants of relief in these circumstances might be (unintentionally) conveying not only preferential treatment for the Government but also a willingness to undercut both our lower court colleagues' well-reasoned interim judgments and the well-established constraints of law that they are in the process of enforcing,' Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote. Jackson was dissenting from the conservative majority's decision to give Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency complete access to the data of millions of Americans kept by the U.S. Social Security Administration. Once again, she wrote in a dissent joined by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, "this Court dons its emergency responder gear, rushes to the scene, and uses its equitable power to fan the flames rather than extinguish them." A district judge had blocked DOGE's access to 'personally identifiable information' while assessing if that access is legal. Jackson said a majority of the court didn't require the administration to show it would be 'irreparably harmed' by not getting immediate access, one of the legal standards for intervention. "It says, in essence, that although other stay applicants must point to more than the annoyance of compliance with lower court orders they don't like," she wrote, "the Government can approach the courtroom bar with nothing more than that and obtain relief from this Court nevertheless." A clock, a mural, a petition: Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson's chambers tell her story In a brief and unsigned decision, the majority said it weighed the 'irreparable harm' factor along with the other required considerations of what's in the public interest and whether the courts are likely to ultimately decide that DOGE can get at the data. But the majority did not explain how they did so. Jackson raised a similar complaint when the court on May 30 said the administration can revoke the temporary legal status of hundreds of thousands of Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans living in the United States. Jackson wrote that the court "plainly botched" its assessment of whether the government or the approximately 530,000 migrants would suffer the greater harm if their legal status ends while the administration's mass termination of that status is being litigated. Jackson said the majority undervalued "the devastating consequences of allowing the Government to precipitously upend the lives and livelihoods of nearly half a million noncitizens while their legal claims are pending." The majority did not offer an explanation for its decision. In addition to those interventions, the Supreme Court recently blocked a judge's order requiring DOGE to disclose information about its operations, declined to reinstate independent agency board members fired by Trump, allowed Trump to strip legal protections from 350,000 Venezuelans and said the president can enforce his ban on transgender people serving in the military. Jackson disagreed with all of those decisions. The court's two other liberal justices – Sotomayor and Elena Kagan – disagreed with most of them. More: Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson can throw a punch. Literally. The court did hand Trump a setback in May when it barred the administration from quickly resuming deportations of Venezuelans under a 1798 wartime law. Two of the court's six conservative justices – Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito – dissented. Decisions are expected in the coming weeks on other Trump emergency requests, including whether the president can dismantle the Education Department and can enforce his changes to birthright citizenship. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Justice Jackson warns Supreme Court is sending a 'troubling message'
Washington Post
an hour ago
- Washington Post
Trump tells Iran's supreme leader: 'You got beat to hell'
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Friday scoffed at Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's heated warning to the U.S. not to launch future strikes on Iran, as well as the Iranian supreme leader's assertion that Tehran 'won the war' with Israel. Trump, in remarks to reporters and later in an extended statement on social media, said the ayatollah's comments defied reality after 12 days of Israeli strikes and the U.S. bombardment of three key nuclear sites inflicted severe damage on the country's nuclear program. The president suggested Khamenei's comments were unbecoming of Iran's most powerful political and religious figure. 'Look, you're a man of great faith. A man who's highly respected in his country. You have to tell the truth,' Trump said of Khamenei. 'You got beat to hell.' The U.S. president spoke out a day after Khamenei insisted Tehran had delivered a 'slap to America's face' by striking a U.S. air base in Qatar and warned against further attacks by the U.S. or Israel on Iran. Khamenei's pre-recorded statement , which aired on Iranian state television, was the first time that Iranians had heard directly from the supreme leader in days. The heated rhetoric from Trump and Khamenei continued as both leaders face difficult questions about the impact of the strikes. Trump and his aides have pushed back vociferously after an early damage assessment from the Defense Intelligence Agency became public and indicated that the U.S. bombardment likely only set back Tehran's nuclear program by months. The 86-year-old Khamenei, the most powerful figure in Iran's theocracy, meanwhile, has appeared intent on demonstrating his authority and vigor amid speculation about his health and how involved he was in making Iran's wartime decisions through the 12-day conflict. In a social media post Friday, Trump also appeared to refer to a plan presented to the White House by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government in the first days of the Israel-Iran conflict to try to kill Khamenei. Trump vetoed that plan , according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity. 'His Country was decimated, his three evil Nuclear Sites were OBLITERATED, and I knew EXACTLY where he was sheltered, and would not let Israel, or the U.S. Armed Forces, by far the Greatest and Most Powerful in the World, terminate his life,' Trump posted on Truth Social. 'I SAVED HIM FROM A VERY UGLY AND IGNOMINIOUS DEATH, and he does not have to say, 'THANK YOU, PRESIDENT TRUMP!' Trump, after the U.S. airstrikes, sent chilling warnings via social media to Khamenei that the U.S. knew where he was but had no plans to kill him , 'at least for now.' After launching the U.S. strikes — including with U.S.-made bunker-buster bombs — Trump has been insistent that Iran's nuclear sites have been 'obliterated.' Administration officials have not disputed the contents of the DIA report but have sought to focus on a CIA statement and other intelligence assessments, including those out of Iran and Israel, that said the strikes severely damaged the nuclear sites and rendered an enrichment facility inoperable. Trump also said that he expects Iran to open itself to international inspection to verify it doesn't restart its nuclear program. Asked if he would demand during expected talks with Iran that the International Atomic Energy Agency or some other organization be authorized to conduct inspections, Trump told reporters the Islamic Republic would have to cooperate with the IAEA 'or somebody that we respect, including ourselves.' White House officials have said they expect to restart talks soon with Iran, though nothing has been scheduled. U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff earlier this week said there has been direct and indirect communication between the countries. A sixth round of U.S.-Iran negotiations was scheduled for earlier this month in Oman but was canceled after Israel attacked Iran. Trump expressed confidence that Iran's nuclear ambition has faded. 'Can I tell you, they're exhausted. And Israel's exhausted, too,' Trump said. He added, 'The last thing they're thinking right now is nuclear.'
CNN
an hour ago
- CNN
Newsom sues Fox News, alleging defamation over how it covered a phone call with Trump
California Gov. Gavin Newsom is suing Fox News for $787 million, accusing the media outlet of defamation in its coverage of a recent phone call between him and President Donald Trump. The legal action comes as Newsom, a potential 2028 presidential contender, has intensified his pushback against Trump. The lawsuit stems from a public dispute between Newsom and Trump over the timing of a phone call that occurred as protests took hold in Los Angeles over the Trump administration's immigration enforcement efforts earlier this month. In a lawsuit filed in Delaware Superior Court, Newsom's attorneys allege Fox News defamed him by airing deceptively edited videos and making false statements claiming the Democratic governor lied about the phone call. 'Why would Newsom lie and claim Trump never called him?' Fox News anchor Jesse Watters said in one segment cited in the lawsuit. Newsom's attorneys also noted the segment featured a chyron reading, 'Gavin Lied About Trump's Call.' Newsom's attorneys argued the network attempted to damage Newsom's future political prospects. 'Individual viewers who heard Fox's statement that Governor Newsom was 'lying' about when he last spoke to President Trump are less likely to support Governor Newsom in future elections and are less likely to support Governor Newsom's causes or contribute to his political organizations,' the attorneys wrote. Newsom's attorneys also sent a letter to Fox News saying the governor will drop the lawsuit if the network retracts the claims and Watters issues an on-air apology. The request for $787 million damages mirrors the figure Fox News paid Dominion Voting Systems in a settlement to avert a defamation trial over the media outlet's 2020 election lies. 'If Fox News wants to lie to the American people on Donald Trump's behalf, it should face consequences – just like it did in the Dominion case,' Newsom said in a statement. 'Until Fox is willing to be truthful, I will keep fighting against their propaganda machine.' Fox News rejected Newsom's claims. 'Gov. Newsom's transparent publicity stunt is frivolous and designed to chill free speech critical of him,' a Fox News spokesperson said. 'We will defend this case vigorously and look forward to it being dismissed.' Newsom is suing Fox News in his personal capacity. His attorneys include Mark Bankston, who represented the families of the children killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School when they sued InfoWars host Alex Jones over his false claims about the 2012 massacre, and Michael Teeter. The California governor has appeared on Fox News in several high-profile moments, including a debate with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2023. The moves come amid speculation about Newsom's future presidential ambitions. Newsom, who is term-limited, has stepped up his pushback against Trump, a longtime rival, as California has become a target for the Trump administration. In his official capacity, Newsom has sued the Trump administration over tariff policy and the president's deployment of the National Guard to Los Angeles earlier this month. Shortly after the lawsuit was announced, Newsom sent a fundraising email noting the suit in the subject line and asking for contributions to his political group.
