South Africa expressed disappointment on Sunday after The Sunday Times claimed that the United States and other Western powers wrote to President Cyril Ramaphosa urging him to tackle corruption, and said those countries had breached diplomatic protocol.

However, according to a Daily Maverick report this diplomatic incident is a misunderstanding and refers to a memo from meetings held eight months ago.

The Sunday Times newspaper reported that the United States, Britain, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland, had sent a joint memorandum to Ramaphosa through their diplomatic missions in Pretoria to warn that foreign investment was at risk unless South Africa takes tangible action against perpetrators of corruption and other serious crimes.

The ambassadors say that contrary to the report, this was not signed by the Ambassadors nor was it sent to Ramaphosa. It was “merely a memo or discussion paper setting down talking points as the basis for discussion with one of Ramaphosa’s special investment envoys, former Standard Bank CEO Jaco Maree”, reported the Daily Maverick. It further reported that the memo contained other items to discuss, not just corruption.

DIRCO responded to the Sunday Times report earlier today “with disappointment” saying that the dispatching of a memorandum to the office of the presidency is a departure from established diplomatic practice.

In addition to voicing disappointment at the alleged diplomatic ‘faux pas’ DIRCO said: “We are satisfied that all the branches of our democratic state, including state agencies, are vigorously pursuing their respective mandates to address our current challenges.”

Ramaphosa has vowed to root out corruption and address policy uncertainty in Africa’s most advanced economy. An inquiry into state corruption is currently underway.

(Reporting by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo; Editing by Susan Fenton/Reuters and Jennie Glover/SAPeople)