Durban — Former Chief Justice Raymond Zondo called on the current government executive to honour the late Pravin Gordhan by fighting corruption and preventing state capture from recurring.
Delivering his tribute at Gordhan’s funeral service in Durban on Thursday, Zondo, who chaired the State Capture Commission, hailed Gordhan for fighting corruption and praised him for being the first sitting Cabinet minister to testify about corrupt activities that took place in government.
However, Nelson Mandela Bay University-based political analyst Ongama Mtimka said Gordhan’s legacy was negatively affected by his failure to quickly turn around state-owned enterprises, which continued to drain the state fiscus through bailouts.
Independent political analyst Thobani Zikalala said Gordhan left the country’s state enterprises in a mess.
Zondo said Gordhan’s testimony assisted the commission in understanding the reasons behind his sacking as minister of finance, saying his dismissal was because he was resisting corruption which allegedly involved the Gupta family. He said to honour Gordhan, the country’s executive must pick up his spear and continue the fight against corruption.
“Gordhan was persecuted for standing against corruption. All government executives must emulate him by fighting corruption and prevent state capture from recurring,” said Zondo.
He also revealed that when Gordhan was recalled while on an investment trip in 2017, by the then-president Jacob Zuma, the intention was to push him to resign because at that time the government wanted a finance minister that was going to work with the Gupta family, something Gordhan had resisted.
He said while on his way back, Gordhan was informed by another ANC senior member that his recall was a ploy to get him to resign and advised him not to. He said Gordhan followed the advice and was eventually fired in March.
He said the reason for his dismissal emerged during commission proceedings where his deputy, Mcebisi Jonas, testified that he was called into the Gupta Saxonwold compound and was offered Gordhan’s position by the Gupta brothers, which he refused in 2016.
Delivering his eulogy, President Cyril Ramaphosa also described Gordhan as a “principled and ethical” man who stood against corruption. Ramaphosa hailed him for building the SA Revenue Service (Sars), saying as a pharmacist he may not have seemed the best choice to lead Sars, yet his intelligence, his enterprise and his diligence made him the perfect person.
He said it was these attributes that made him the right person to be appointed minister of finance at a time of great difficulty for the South African and the global economy. The president added that in every task that Gordhan was given and occupied, he was methodical and industrious.
“He understood the value of the work he was given. He understood that efficient revenue collection was essential for the fundamental transformation of our society. He understood that careful management of public finances was vital for the education of our children and the health of our population. He knew that if the lives of the poor were ever to be improved, municipalities needed to work – and to work well. He knew that if unemployed South Africans were to find work, the country’s trains needed to run and its ports needed to function. He knew that power stations needed to produce enough electricity to drive a thriving economy. He did the work that needed to be done,” said the president.
Gordhan’s funeral was attended by almost all the Cabinet ministers, friends and his former Struggle activists. All the speakers hailed him as a corruption buster who stood firm against state capture.
Speakers included his long-time comrade Mac Maharaj, who was with him during the times of Operation Vula in 1987, an underground uMkhonto weSizwe army operation to smuggle activists back to the country via Mozambique and Swaziland. Mcebisi Jonas, Ela Gandhi, Cosatu president Zingiswa Losi, Blade Nzimande, and Gordhan’s daughters Anisha and Priyesha also spoke.
Gordhan died last week after a short battle with cancer and was cremated privately later on Thursday.
All speakers said those who attacked and hated Gordhan were the beneficiaries of the state capture and urged his family members not to bother themselves with them.
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