Cyril to appoint new Sars chief

President Cyril Ramaphosa will soon initiate a process to appoint a new Sars commissioner, following the decision by the North Gauteng High Court to uphold the dismissal of former commissioner Tom Moyane.

Ramaphosa’s spokesperson‚ Khusela Diko‚ said on Tuesday: “President Ramaphosa has welcomed the judgment as a step towards stabilising Sars at a time when efficient revenue collection and tax justice is vital to economic recovery and restoring the confidence of taxpayers.”

Ramaphosa fired Moyane in November after a recommendation by the commission of inquiry into governance of the revenue service and tax administration‚ headed by retired judge Robert Nugent.

“Moyane subsequently engaged in litigation to overturn his dismissal‚ to interdict the appointment of a new Sars commissioner and to prevent the commission of inquiry from submitting its final report.

“The North Gauteng High Court dismissed Moyane’s application with punitive costs [on Tuesday]‚” Diko said.

Judge Hans Fabricius said in his judgment that the matter was not urgent and dismissed Moyane’s bid to block the Nugent commission’s final report.

Moyane’s lawyer‚ Eric Mabuza‚ has since indicated a possible appeal against the ruling.

But an attempt to approach the Constitutional Court on the same matter was dismissed in November. - TimesLIVE