Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan officially charged and summoned to court

Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan has been ordered to appear before court on a charge of fraud over the SARS spy unit.

EWN reported that the charge of fraud relates to a payout made by Sars to former deputy Sars Commissioner Ivan Pillay when he took early retirement.

Former SARS Commissioner Oupa Magashula and  Pillay have also been charged.

National Prosecuting Authority boss Shaun Abrahams said that the “high risk investigation unit was operating long before former Finance Minister Trevor Manuel’s authorisation”.

He added that it was put together in a “strange and convert manner with members recruited from structures like the SAPS, Intelligence Department, the former Scorpions, SARS, and private sector”.

Abrahams said that the so-called “rogue unit did not operate from the SARS office and instead worked from “homes and coffee shops” conducting “clandestine and overt operations”.

Gordhan had told the Hawks the operation was established in a perfectly legal manner.

Abrahamas added that Gordhan’s assertion that the investigation was “mischievous” was incorrect and that there is no proof that former President Thabo Mbeki approved the spy unit.
In August, the Democratic Alliance warned that the arrest of Gordhan would be a disaster for South Africa.

“The arrest of the Finance Minister would shatter investor confidence, risk a sovereign ratings downgrade and be a disaster for the already fragile zero growth, zero jobs economy in South Africa,” said Democratic Alliance MP David Maynier.