WITHDRAWL OF DEFAMTION CLAIM BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN REVENUE SERVICE (SARS) AND MR TOM MOYANE
30 SEPTEMBER 2018 – Lawyers for SARS and Moyane, its suspended Commissioner, gave written notice on Thursday last week that civil proceedings against me are withdrawn. The parties also indicated that they will pay legal costs incurred.
In May 2015, I was served with a combined summons in which SARS and Moyane claimed R12 million in damages from me.
The civil claims emanate from a submission I made to the Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Finance (SCOF) and the Chairperson of the Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence in Parliament, on 24 March 2015, having resigned as the SARS Spokesperson on 19 March 2015.
I raised the following concerns to the two Parliamentary committees, in view of the oversight function in the Legislature—
- That a disinformation campaign was being advanced by SARS and the Sunday Times newspaper, following the appointment of Moyane as SARS Commissioner in September 2014, of the existence of a “covert intelligence”, “rogue” and ostensibly illegal and unlawful investigative unit within SARS;
- That to my knowledge, there was no substance or truth to such allegations, including claims that the “rogue unit” “bugged” the home of former President Jacob Zuma, ran a brothel and employed the services of prostitutes and “spied” on politicians and taxpayers;
- That Moyane suspended the SARS Executive Committee, six weeks after assuming office, on the strength of the Sunday Timesheadlines during that period;
- That Moyane’s actions caused or will cause some of the most experienced senior SARS executives to resign, which will deprive the institution of critical skills;
- That an atmosphere of fear was being instilled under Moyane where SARS employees were effectively being “muzzled, bullied, threatened, suspended, and their tenure at SARS made unbearable”; and
- That ultimately, the destabilization of SARS will lead to shortfalls in revenue collection that will pose risks to the fiscus in the future.
Regrettably, the Parliamentary committees chose not to consider or entertain the substance of my submission. Instead, Dr Dion George, a former DA member of the SCOF, released my letter to the media and SARS and Moyane responded by instituting civil proceedings against me.
It is also regrettable that many of the concerns outlined in March 2015, regarding SARS and its revenue collection capability, seem to have materialized, as evidence and testimony before the current Nugent Commission of Inquiry into SARS, have shown.
For their unequivocal support to me during this difficult period of having to litigate against SARS and Moyane, I wish to thank my family, the law firm Webber Wentzel, Advocate Max du Plessis, Ms Janet Love, the former National Director of the Legal Resources Centre and her team, civil society institutions like Freedom Under Law, the Helen Suzman Foundation, the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, as well as a growing network of progressive public sector employees who have mobilsed themselves since 2016 to speak out and fight against abuse, intimidation, injustice and victimization within our public institutions. These civil society institutions have supported many other public sector officials who have been hounded out of institutions because they would not endorse or enable corruption and state capture.
Due to the conduct of SARS and Moyane, considerable damaged was caused not only to the institution, but to the careers and reputations of many former and current SARS colleagues as well.
In particular, my former SARS colleagues, Messers Ivan Pillay and Johann van Loggerenberg, are still being persecuted. They still face criminal charges before court based on the allegations of a “rogue unit” despite such allegations being extensively disproved.
They need our continued support and vigilance to ensure that justice also prevails for them and their families.
Statement issued by Adrian Lackay, 30 September 2018
