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The court also issued an order for punitive costs against Busisiwe Mkwebane and described his conduct in the matter as “egregious”.
Public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane. Photo: Abigail Javier / EWN
JOHANNESBURG – On Monday, the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria annulled the Public Protector’s report on Sars’s so-called “rogue unit”.
The court also issued an order for punitive costs against Busisiwe Mkwebane and described his conduct in the matter as “egregious”.
The court has found that Mkwebane relied on discredited information in compiling his report, showing a bias towards Gordhan and also towards Ivan Pillay.
In the now discredited report, the Public Protector had discovered that Gordhan misled Parliament during his tenure as Sars commissioner by not disclosing a meeting he had with the Guptas.
He also claimed that he violated intelligence laws by overseeing the establishment of “an intelligence unit” in Sars 13 years ago, now known as the “rogue unit.”
Mkhwebane had recommended that President Cyril Ramaphosa take action against Gordhan.
ALSO READ: Mkhwebane’s Findings About Gordhan: How Did We Get Here?
The unit was called the High Risk Investigations Unit and it is alleged that it carried out dishonest operations, such as microphones in the offices of the National Prosecutor’s Office. The unit was created to investigate high-profile tax offenders.
In his report, Mkhwebane said that Sars did not follow proper procurement processes when acquiring equipment for the unit, adding that he even had evidence that the unit illegally intercepted communications in 2007.
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