President Jacob Zuma chairing the Black Economic Empowerment Advisory Council (BEEAC) workshop, focusing on Radical Socio-Economic Transformation at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in Pretoria. 20 June 2017. (GCIS)
President Jacob Zuma chairing the Black Economic Empowerment Advisory Council (BEEAC) workshop, focusing on Radical Socio-Economic Transformation at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in Pretoria. 20 June 2017. (GCIS)
South Africa’s former president Jacob Zuma on Tuesday threw his weight behind Tom Moyane, the ex-head of the country’s tax collection agency who was recently sacked by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
It’s one of the most unholy alliances you could wish to see in South African politics. Zuma, with a charge sheet longer than the N1, is publicly backing one of the most-maligned public servants in recent history.
Jacob Zuma supports Moyane’s legal bid
Moyane has been comprehensively criticised for his mismanagement of SARS and it’s no surprise to see JZ fight his corner. The ex-commissioner was more than willing to help Zuma dodge tax through his political career, as detailed in Jacques Pauw’s expose The President’s Keepers.
The move pitted Zuma directly against his successor Ramaphosa, who came to power in February when Zuma was ousted due to multiple graft scandals. Ramaphosa this month fired Tom Moyane after a judicial inquiry recommended his removal to save the once respected tax authority.
Moyane has gone to court to challenge his sacking. In an affidavit backing the application, Zuma said the inquiry that recommended that Moyane should be sacked had overstepped its mandate.
Why Tom Moyane was sacked
The investigation “has deviated (from) its originally intended purpose,” Zuma said in the document lodged with the Constitutional Court. Ramaphosa has said he took the decision to sack Moyane as head of the South African Revenue Service (SARS) “to forestall any further deterioration of our tax administration system”.
The investigation had painted “a deeply concerning picture of the current state of SARS and the reckless mismanagement which characterised your tenure,” said Ramaphosa.
Ramaphosa and Zuma have kept any friction behind closed doors as their rival factions tussle for influence in the ruling ANC party ahead of next year’s general election. However, JZ has been keeping up appearances in public, and his spectre is likely to remain throughout the 2019 campaign.
