African National Congress secretary-general Gwede Mantashe has questioned the timing of a letter from the Hawks to Pravin Gordhan‚ expressing the party’s “full confidence” in the finance minister.Mantashe criticised the letter‚ saying the intention was to “distract” the minister “during this important time”.
The statement pulls no punches and clearly shows the rift between top leaders of the party over Gordhan’s return to the key post‚ after President Jacob Zuma earlier this week described Des Van Rooyen as “the most qualified” finance minister he had appointed thus far‚ in what appeared to be a swipe at Gordhan.
The statement comes as the battle between Gordhan and South African Revenue Service (SARS) commissioner Tom Moyane – who has the support of Zuma – reached breaking point.
Gordhan‚ ahead of his budget speech‚ told Zuma that either he or Moyane must go and Zuma reportedly indicated his support for Moyane in response.
Gordhan‚ speaking at a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) event yesterday, described Moyane’s defiance as “absolutely unacceptable”.
This is after Moyane did not halt a massive restructuring of SARS on Gordhan’s instructions.
The statement from the ANC is also unusual for the party‚ who until now has steered clear of commenting publicly on the SARS fallout.
In the statement yesterday‚ Mantashe said: “It is the view of the ANC that the complex and difficult work that has been done by the President and Minister since December to date‚ including during the budget speech‚ have restored the confidence of our people in the economy and brought about stability.
“We further reiterate our full confidence in the Minister and his team for the work they continue to do‚” Mantashe said.
He said the party noted the media reports on the Hawks’ letter to Gordhan days before he delivered his budget.
The letter had asked Gordhan to provide clarity on his knowledge of the “rogue unit”; the employment and contract given to former SARS deputy commissioner Ivan Pillay; Project Sunday Evenings in which the National Prosecuting Authority was reportedly spied on; and on Andries “Skollie” van Rensburg‚ a SARS employee who left under a cloud.
Gordhan confirmed receiving the letter on Friday at the PwC event.
Mantashe said it was “unfortunate that there are now initiatives that are intended to undermine” the work done to stabilise the economy.
He warned that it could have a “destabilising effect in the long term”.
“The timing of these questions indicates clearly that there was intention to distract the minister during this important time.
“It is even more disconcerting that these questions were leaked to the media.
“In our view this is a well-calculated destabilisation plan with all the elements of disinformation‚ falsehoods and exaggerated facts‚” he said.
Mantashe added that it knew who was leaking the information and would “engage” the person responsible.
“In the event that the Hawks have anything to investigate related to the minister and SARS‚ it would be in the best interest of our country if they did so professionally‚ using the correct channel and procedures and not seek to conduct a trial through the media‚” Mantashe said.
ANC confident of Gordhan
Mantashe criticised the letter‚ saying the intention was to “distract” the minister “during this important time”.
The statement pulls no punches and clearly shows the rift between top leaders of the party over Gordhan’s return to the key post‚ after President Jacob Zuma earlier this week described Des Van Rooyen as “the most qualified” finance minister he had appointed thus far‚ in what appeared to be a swipe at Gordhan.
The statement comes as the battle between Gordhan and South African Revenue Service (SARS) commissioner Tom Moyane – who has the support of Zuma – reached breaking point.
Gordhan‚ ahead of his budget speech‚ told Zuma that either he or Moyane must go and Zuma reportedly indicated his support for Moyane in response.
Gordhan‚ speaking at a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) event yesterday, described Moyane’s defiance as “absolutely unacceptable”.
This is after Moyane did not halt a massive restructuring of SARS on Gordhan’s instructions.
The statement from the ANC is also unusual for the party‚ who until now has steered clear of commenting publicly on the SARS fallout.
In the statement yesterday‚ Mantashe said: “It is the view of the ANC that the complex and difficult work that has been done by the President and Minister since December to date‚ including during the budget speech‚ have restored the confidence of our people in the economy and brought about stability.
“We further reiterate our full confidence in the Minister and his team for the work they continue to do‚” Mantashe said.
He said the party noted the media reports on the Hawks’ letter to Gordhan days before he delivered his budget.
The letter had asked Gordhan to provide clarity on his knowledge of the “rogue unit”; the employment and contract given to former SARS deputy commissioner Ivan Pillay; Project Sunday Evenings in which the National Prosecuting Authority was reportedly spied on; and on Andries “Skollie” van Rensburg‚ a SARS employee who left under a cloud.
Gordhan confirmed receiving the letter on Friday at the PwC event.
Mantashe said it was “unfortunate that there are now initiatives that are intended to undermine” the work done to stabilise the economy.
He warned that it could have a “destabilising effect in the long term”.
“The timing of these questions indicates clearly that there was intention to distract the minister during this important time.
“It is even more disconcerting that these questions were leaked to the media.
“In our view this is a well-calculated destabilisation plan with all the elements of disinformation‚ falsehoods and exaggerated facts‚” he said.
Mantashe added that it knew who was leaking the information and would “engage” the person responsible.
“In the event that the Hawks have anything to investigate related to the minister and SARS‚ it would be in the best interest of our country if they did so professionally‚ using the correct channel and procedures and not seek to conduct a trial through the media‚” Mantashe said.
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