The majority judgments of the Constitutional Court -- that the National Assembly erred in deciding not to interrogate the Phala Phala matter -- reveal a court that takes very seriously its role as an independent custodian of the Constitution and its values. It also raises two intriguing possibilities for the way forward.

On 9 February 2020, at President Cyril Ramaphosa's private residence at the Phala Phala Wildlife game farm, foreign currency was stolen. Arthur Fraser, the controversial one-time director-general of the State Security Agency, lodged a criminal complaint that millions of dollars were involved, that the proceeds constituted money laundering and that the President was involved in a cover-up to defeat the ends of justice.

The President offered the following explanation: He insisted that the money was the proceeds of a cash sale of 20 buffalo made on Christmas Day in 2019 to a Sudanese businessman, Mr Mustafa Hazi.

According to him, the money ($580,000) was kept in a safe in an office at Phala Phala and, on his instructions, would be banked on the return of Phala Phala's general manager, Mr Hendrik von Wielligh, who was on leave, and the sale transaction was processed to finality after the festive season.

Keep up with the latest headlines on WhatsApp | LinkedIn

No tax invoice had been generated and the buffalo had not been collected. However, the Phala Phala lodge manager, Mr Sylvester Ndlovu, was uncomfortable about leaving the money in the safe, to which several staff members had access. He decided to "store [it] below cushions of a sofa" in a rarely...