For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Halima Frost.

Making headlines: Court halts Phala Phala impeachment process; National action plan for water published; And, Nigeria's Tinubu approves army expansion

Court halts Phala Phala impeachment process

The Western Cape High Court has granted President Cyril Ramaphosa an urgent interim interdict, pausing Parliament’s Section 89 impeachment process.

Delivered today, the ruling halts the parliamentary process pending a separate legal review regarding the Phala Phala game farm scandal.

Last month Ramaphosa asked the court that impeachment proceedings be paused until the court finalises a separate application by the President for a review of an independent panel’s report on an incident at the President’s Phala Phala game farm.

In a statement following the ruling, the Presidency stated that the President respects the ruling, and that he sees it as a “validation of judicial independence” and the separation of powers as per the Constitution.

Spokesperson to the President Vincent Magwenya stressed that the President remains “fully committed” to cooperating with lawful accountability mechanisms.

Concurrently, Parliament’s Section 89 Impeachment Committee chairperson Makashule Gana confirmed that the committee has noted the court’s pause on public hearings.

National action plan for water published

Meanwhile, South Africa’s water crisis reaches a breaking point, Ramaphosa has published the National Water Action Plan, outlining strategic interventions to reverse the significant deterioration in water supply and quality over the short, medium and long term.

The release of the plan followed a meeting of the National Water Crisis Committee in Pretoria yesterday.

WATERCOM, chaired by Ramaphosa and comprising a range of government departments and public agencies, as well as the South African Local Government Association, was established following the 2026 State of the Nation Address in February in response to the increasingly severe water supply interruptions in several parts of the country.

The plan, developed by WATERCOM, sets out a focused, programmatic series of actions to ensure a reliable supply of quality water to all South Africans, aiming to address the root causes of the water supply challenges in many municipalities.

Informed by extensive consultation with stakeholders across all three spheres of government – national, provincial and local – and associations such as Salga, the NWAP outlines a strategy to increase investment in infrastructure, including through private sector investment; implement legal and regulatory reforms to improve municipal service delivery; and address corruption and criminality in the water sector.

And, Nigeria's Tinubu approves army expansion

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has approved an expansion of the army to 12 divisions from eight and the recruitment of 28 000 additional personnel, the presidency said today, as the government seeks to bolster its response to persistent security threats.

Tinubu approved four new army divisions in Makurdi, Ilorin, Jalingo and Benin City, spokesperson Bayo Onanuga said.

The government also approved an increase in investment in equipment, operational readiness and troop welfare to modernise the armed forces.

The expanded 12-division structure will retain headquarters in eight cities, with the new formations covering parts of central, northeastern and southern Nigeria.

The expansion will be implemented in two phases, with the 5th, 9th and 10th divisions operational by September and the 83rd Division in Benin City by December.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today

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