Zuma wants Gordhan to cooperate with Hawks – report

29th February 2016

By: News24Wire

  

Font size: - +

Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan will not receive any help from President Jacob Zuma relating to the so-called rogue unit at South African Revenue Service (Sars) at the time he was commissioner, according to City Press.

This despite the Presidency rejecting claims of a conspiracy against Gordhan and the African National Congress (ANC) issuing a formal statement of support for Gordhan.

The paper reported on Sunday that The Hawks are confident that they have a strong case against Gordhan, adding that Zuma was briefed by Police Minister Nathi Nhleko and Hawks head Major General Mthandazo Ntlemeza on the progress of the case at a meeting last month.

Zuma, who is said to believe that Gordhan should cooperate with investigators, was taken through the details of the case.

In a letter sent to Gordhan last Friday, Gordhan was given until Wednesday to hand-deliver his responses to 27 questions over his involvement with the formation of the so-called rogue unit at Sars.

Secretary General Gwede Mantashe said the ruling party was "extremely concerned" about reports that the Hawks sent questions to Gordhan four days before his Budget Speech about his knowledge of a rogue unit.

However, Zuma's office indirectly hit back at Mantashe, saying it "noted rumours and gossip which insinuate some conspiracy" against the finance minister.

The Hawks’ investigation into the unit began after Sars commissioner Tom Moyane laid a criminal complaint at the Brooklyn Police Station in Pretoria in May last year.

In the document, the Hawks allege that Gordhan and former Sars deputy commissioner Ivan Pillay were instrumental in the creation of the unit.

The case against Gordhan relates primarily to his approval of the unit’s formation, as well as its operations, his extension of Pillay’s contract and Pillay’s early retirement settlement.

Moyane's tenure at Sars has been marked by the purge of a number of top Sars officials, which has disrupted the running of the unit.

A KPMG report, commissioned by Moyane, alleged Gordhan was responsible for a unit, conducting illegal intelligence-gathering and surveillance, that allegedly probed Zuma and his allies.

Between 2007 and 2013, these units assisted law enforcement agencies in combating crime, seizing illegal tobacco and drugs, clamping down on outstanding customs duties, raising tax assessments on defaulting taxpayers and preserving assets.

While critics alleged that the unit was illegally set up, Gordhan has made it clear he disagrees with the report’s allegations.

News24.com

Edited by News24Wire

Comments

The content you are trying to access is only available to subscribers.

If you are already a subscriber, you can Login Here.

If you are not a subscriber, you can subscribe now, by selecting one of the below options.

For more information or assistance, please contact us at subscriptions@creamermedia.co.za.

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION