Cyril Ramaphosa has resigned from the board of Lonmin, the platinum producer, to avoid conflict of interest as he was recently elected deputy president of the ruling ANC.

This is in keeping with an announcement Ramaphosa made last month shortly after he was elected deputy president of the African National Congress (ANC) at its national conference in Mangaung in December.

Last month, Ramaphosa promised to review his existing positions, responsibilities and obligations to address any “potential conflicts of interest”

“This will allow me to ensure that I can adequately perform the responsibilities of my new position,” he said at the time.

This week Lonmin said: “As planned and previously announced, Cyril Ramaphosa, a non-executive director of the company, retired from the board at the conclusion of the annual general meeting (AGM) held yesterday (Thursday).”

In October last year, the Farlam Commission, which is investigating the Marikana shooting, heard that Ramaphosa allegedly said in an e-mail that the events around the five-week stoppage by Lonmin workers were criminal acts.

The legal team representing Marikana miners revealed this at hearings being held at the Rustenburg Civic Centre.

On the eve of the Marikana shooting, he allegedly told management and Ramaphosa will also be stepping down as joint chairman of both Mondi and Mondi at its AGM in May.

Ramaphosa is also a director of SABMiller, the Standard Bank Group and a number of smaller companies.

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