Gordhan charged with fraud

South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan. Picture: Siphiwe Sibeko

South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan. Picture: Siphiwe Sibeko

Published Oct 11, 2016

Share

Johannesburg - South African prosecutors said they will prosecute Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan for fraud.

They have summoned him to appear in court amid allegations that he illegally authorised an early retirement and established a illicit investigative unit when he headed the national tax agency almost a decade ago.

The rand fell by as much 3.5 percent against the dollar, the most since June 24.

The case is politically motivated and South Africans need to ask why it was filed just weeks before the delivery of the mid-term budget, Gordhan said in a speech delivered in Midrand near Johannesburg on Tuesday.

“There is no case,” he said. He is due to appear in court on November 2.

National Prosecuting Authority Shaun Abrahams told reporters in Pretoria that the investigative unit set up within the South African Revenue Services wasn’t properly authorised.

He denied that politics played any role in the case against Gordhan. He said the summons is for a charge of fraud.

BLOOMBERG

Related Topics: