Battle for Treasury to be aired in Parliament

The fight for control of the Treasury is expected to spill over into Parliament when Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa answers oral questions this week.

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Parliament - The fight for control of the National Treasury is expected to spill over into Parliament when Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa will answer oral questions in the National Assembly.

Ramaphosa, who last week came out in support of Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, will face questions from parties in the chamber on Thursday.

The deputy president’s defence of Gordhan came when the latter was expected to make a warning statement to the Hawks on Thursday, but he did not show up.

This was after he had indicated he would not set foot in the Hawks' offices as he had not done anything wrong.

The National Prosecuting Authority has since confirmed it received a docket from the Hawks.

Gordhan had been under pressure from the beginning of the year after it was disclosed before his Budget in February that the Hawks were gunning for him.

The question-and-answer session in the National Assembly will give parties an opportunity to grill the deputy president.

The opposition had been calling on President Jacob Zuma to intervene in the matter, but he has refused to do so.

Co-operative Governance Minister Des van Rooyen, who briefly held the position of finance minister last year, had come out in support of Zuma and urged his successor at the Treasury to co-operate with the Hawks.

The divisions in the country and within the ANC have been apparent, with the ANC Youth League also calling on Gordhan to co-operate with the crime unit.

Ramaphosa was the first top official in the government and ANC to break ranks and back Gordhan.

He warned that the situation was untenable and created divisions in the state.

Ramaphosa is the country’s and ANC’s second in command.

Zuma has stuck to his guns and refused to step in and resolve the impasse.

Gordhan appeared to have lost another battle in Parliament after the SA Revenue Service tabled its strategic plan in the National Assembly.

This followed a stand-off between Gordhan and his successor at Sars, Tom Moyane, over the new structure at Sars.

Gordhan had refused to sign off on the agency's new reorganisation plan for several months until Moyane had reversed his decision.

This led to Parliament hauling the two parties over the coals and demanding the tabling of the Sars strategic plan by the end of July.

This was done by Gordhan, and there was no indication from the Treasury if the finance minister had succumbed to the pressure and whether he had agreed to the new Sars structure.

Political Bureau