Former Finance Minister, Pravin Gordhan, described the intelligence report used as a basis to fire him and his Deputy, Mcebisi Jonas, as “nonsense”.
Gordhan was addressing the media Friday morning on his axing and that of Jonas hours after President Zuma made the midnight announcement.
The former Finance Minister was also magnanimous in thanking President Zuma for the opportunity to serve South Africa.
He recounted the events that followed the 2015 axing of Nhlanhle Nene as the Finance Minister and the short appointment of Des van Rooyen, before the markets tanked forcing President Zuma to re-appoint Gordhan.
“I asked why me,” Gordhan said, adding that he was told that he would be the best person to “calm the markets” at the time.
Gordhan said he was also sickened by the allegation that he had secret meetings to undermine the government, as claimed in the intelligence report which was widely discredited, even by ANC alliance partner, the SA Communist Party.
“If anybody does not want us to do the job, just tell us,” he said, adding that there was no need to justify it through other means.
Gordhan told the media that when he arrived in London on Monday and switched on his phone he saw the message instructing him to return to South Africa.
He also praised Mcebisi Jonas for coming out publicly on efforts by the Gupta family to offer him the Finance Minister’s job following Nene’s axing.
“Our souls are not for sale,” Gordhan said. “We hope more and more South Africans make it absolutely clear that our country is not for sale.”
Over the past 15 to 16 months we have been subjected to the most horrific attacks for the work we have been doing on budgets etc. He said the budgets were products of cabinet consultations.
Gordhan and Jonas still remain Members of Parliament.
Jonas told the briefing that all South Africans should be concerned about a stable economic environment. “We are at a crossroads in South Africa,” he said.
He said there are big lessons that need to be learned.
