ROB ROSE: Fear and loathing in Sars
With a R30bn hole to plug and paranoia rife, the creeping security crackdown of Tom Moyane’s tax agency is deeply troubling
Tom Moyane’s apparent paranoia is manifesting itself in some pretty dark ways at the embattled SA Revenue Service (Sars). The 64-year-old Moyane, who got to know President Jacob Zuma when they were both in exile in Mozambique in 1976, appears to have become increasingly prickly since he took over two years ago and began purging senior staff. Coincidence or not, the revenue agency, since denuded of skills, fell a hefty R30bn short of its tax collection targets last year. And in the background, a toxic cloud hangs over Sars’s head office in Pretoria as an icy behind-the-scenes war between Moyane and finance minister Pravin Gordhan has escalated. Now, it appears that Moyane is willing to go to extreme lengths to ensure his staff remain "loyal".The Financial Mail has obtained an employment contract for a senior Sars official, which looks like it could have been drawn up by a particularly antisocial lawyer from Oceania, the superstate ruled by Big Brother in George Orwell’s dystopian nov...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.