Over the past few days, the media has been dominated by headlines that “Gordhan failed to produce evidence on state capture”. Some commentators have even suggested that the commission is a farce and Pravin Gordhan should be “reshuffled”.
Apparently, Gordhan accused Tom Moyane of “conspiring with the Hawks every day” but could not “produce evidence” when pressed to do so. But what did Dali Mpofu actually achieve at the Zondo commission? What are the facts? When Gordhan said that Moyane is aiding the state capture project and “is conspiring with the Hawks every day”, surely any right-thinking person knows he didn’t mean that he spent seven days a week doing so.
Also, the accusation does not mean he necessarily had hard documentary or first-hand evidence. Surely, the evidence could have been circumstantial based on his (and by the way many South Africans') observations of what Moyane has done and said in the past (including laying charges against Gordhan to derail him from exposing state capture). That is why even in the legal fraternity there is something called “prima facie” evidence.
Only having circumstantial evidence doesn’t mean the accusation is based on “gossip” as has been suggested by many political commentators and Gordhan's detractors. The likes of the EFF, Mpofu and Moyane have done the same by the way. They have accused Gordhan of being racist, arrogant, petty, jealous, working for the Ruperts and Oppenheimers, conspiring with and working under the instructions of white monopoly capital and the Stellenbosch mafia, yet nobody is asking them for evidence.
Their accusation is purely circumstantial based on what they claim to have observed. They have accused him of hating black managers and appointing only whites and Indians yet evidence to the contrary shows that he has appointed scores of black African professionals to senior roles in the government and parastatals.
The big question for me is, “why is the media falling for this narrative?" Where are the so-called independent-thinking political thinkers? Even well-respected independent political thinkers like Khaya Sithole and Lukhona Mnguni seem to have fallen for this propaganda fuelled by the EFF. Gordhan is accused of being arrogant, yet it is clear to everyone that Mpofu’s strategy was to discredit, unsettle and embarrass Gordhan as a witness.
Was Gordhan expected to simply “roll over” and allow himself to be bullied by Mpofu with his line of questioning? Anyone who has been following Mpofu’s style of engagement knows that he bullies, uses insults, intimidation and cynicisms to try and unsettle witnesses and even judges.
You only have to look at his Twitter account as “evidence” to this observation. As a black African compatriot of the Republic who is passionate about my country, I am disappointed at my fellow brothers and sisters, including respected personalities that should know better than to be manipulated by an obvious and longstanding EFF agenda.
The EFF, assisted by the RET (radical economic transformation) faction of the ANC, has used every bit of mud in the book to discredit Gordhan, yet nobody has asked them to produce evidence. Gordhan’s crime is being at the forefront of fighting state capture. Why is the media falling for this obvious agenda? Even more disappointing, why are the ANC comrades (including President Cyril Ramaphosa) letting him “hang out to dry” by himself?
If Gwede Mantashe were to spend just half of the energy he spent defending Zuma during the "nine wasted years", it would make a difference. Gordhan is no angel. He has lots to answer regarding his performance as a minister and his role in propping-up the Zuma administration, especially during his first term. The same applies to people like Jackson Mthembu, Mantashe, Lindiwe Sisulu, Blade Nzimande and Ramaphosa himself. It is time for South Africans, especially black Africans who are in the majority, to stand up and rebut this EFF nonsense. Otherwise they are accomplices to the destruction and looting of our beloved country and the future of our children.
• Cele is a Sowetan reader
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