South African CEOs call for Gordhan charges to be dropped
Reuters
Published Oct 24, 2016 05:41AM ET
South African CEOs call for Gordhan charges to be dropped
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - At least 80 heads of top South African firms including Anglo American (LON:AAL), Barclays (LON:BARC) Africa Group and Naspers want fraud charges against Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan to be dropped.
The top executives of mostly-listed firms in Africa's most industrialized country - ranging from mining, media, retail and banking - said in a newspaper advertisement on Sunday that political wrangling was damaging an already stalling economy at a time the country faced a sovereign credit downgrade.
"We stand as one for the rule of law and against the decision to prosecute the Minister of Finance on charges that are, according to the preponderance of expert legal opinion, without factual or legal foundation," they declared.
The charges say Gordhan, while running the tax agency, fraudulently approved early retirement for a deputy commissioner and re-hired him as a consultant, costing the tax agency around 1.1 million rand ($79,000).
The minister has dismissed the accusations as frivolous and politically motivated.
Analysts and supporters of Gordhan, whose first court appearance is scheduled for Nov. 2, argue that the charges could be a ploy by President Jacob Zuma allies to discredit him.
The president has said he is not in conflict with Gordhan and the country's top prosecutor has denied that the charges are politically motivated. Gordhan said last week his relations with Zuma were very good.
The corporate leaders joined opposition parties, analysts, and top leaders inside the ruling African National Congress, including Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, who have publicly expressed support for Gordhan.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.