The EFF Student Command (EFFSC) has called for the suspension of party MP Tebogo Mokwele, who received money from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s CR17 presidential campaign.

EFF spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi confirmed on Sunday that Mokwele received R40,000 from the campaign account, the Sowetan reported.

Ndlozi said Mokwele had confessed to receiving the money, which she said was assistance for a personal financial problem. 

“She has since confessed to the EFF leadership and indicated that the money related to a personal problem [bereavement] she had, which President Ramaphosa was assisting with,” he said.

Ndlozi said this confession was proof that Ramaphosa was directly involved in the finances of the campaign. 

In a statement issued on its Twitter account, EFFSC spokesperson Xola Mehlomakulu called for Mokwele's immediate suspension pending a full investigation and disciplinary proceedings.

"The EFFSC as a student movement inspired by the EFF founding manifesto and constitution shares the conviction that indeed the first duty of a member of the EFF is always to be loyal to the organisation, hence receiving money from counter-revolutionary constitutional delinquents betrays this loyalty," said Mehlomakulu.

Presidential spokesperson Khusela Diko, who could not verify the payment allegations, told the Sowetan that the payment to Mokwele did not prove that Ramaphosa had day-to-day knowledge of the account's transactions.

"If their account of what transpired is true, all it proves is that the president is a caring and compassionate human being," said Khusela.

Sunday Times Politics Weekly | CR17: Did Ramaphosa buy his position in the ANC?

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