Think tank condemns 'assault on Treasury'

Cape Town - The Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE) has strongly condemned the dismissal of former minister of finance Pravin Gordhan and his deputy Mcebisi Jonas.

"This is clearly an assault on the National Treasury with the goal of making possible further looting of public resources. This action and the manner in which it was done threaten to inflict enormous damage on South Africa’s economy and governance. In the absence of an effective response, economic growth and job creation are likely to collapse," the CDE's executive director Ann Bernstein told Fin24 on Monday.

The CDE is an independent policy research and advocacy think tank.

"We are in a situation where clearly incompetent members of Cabinet have been kept in place, while Gordhan and Jonas, who have been excellent, have been removed," said Bernstein.

"We are very concerned that this opens the door for futhrer looting of public resources of which we have seen a great deal already, for instance scandal after scandal at certain prominent parastatals. This is money which could have been used to grow our economy and help struggling people."

She said the floodgates could now be open for contracts not awarded on merit and not in the interest of the country. That is the fundamental concern of the CDE.

'Outrageous way to deal with situation'

"The way the Cabinet reshuffle was done was not in the interest of SA. To call Gordhan back from his trip to attract investments and help prevent a ratings downgrade is an outrageous way to deal with this situation," said Bernstein.

She added that the CDE is non-partisan, but last week's Cabinet reshuffle goes beyond party politics in the view of the CDE.

"It now threatens enormous damage to the SA economy and any prospects of expanding it. We are saying all citizens should use the institutions of democracy. Get hold of members of parliament, members of the provincial legislatures, mayors, councillors and political parties. Organise and speak out against crony capitalism and state capture. Indicate your displeasure and dismay at the action that was taken," said Bernstein.

"Too many people assume that everyone understands what a ratings downgrade and wholescale disruption could mean for SA. Therefore, make sure everybody understand how very serious this situation is."

* Late on Monday afternoon S&P downgraded South Africa's foreign currency-denominated debt to a sub-investment grade.