Share

Survé: I have evidence Gordhan was involved in raid – but I'll bring it out later

Dr Iqbal Survé, chair of Independent Media and head of investment firm Sekunjalo, says he has "sufficient evidence" to show Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan was involved in the raid conducted on his Cape Town offices on Wednesday morning, but that this evidence will be presented at the "appropriate time".

The offices of Sekunjalo, the investment holding company that Survé heads, were raided by market regulator the Financial Services Conduct Authority (FSCA) on Wednesday.

At the time, Survé blamed "dark forces" for the raid, alleging it was an attempt "to get information we have on … Gordhan and the president (Cyril Ramaphosa) and which my reporters are about to publish this weekend".

Gordhan's legal team has previously slammed Survé allegations of the minister's involvement as defamatory. His attorney, Tebogo Malatji, called the claims "malicious, yet nonsensical utterances" and said Survé's attacks on Gordhan were unsubstantiated, without basis in any evidence or facts. Malatji did not immediately give additional comment on Saturday.

Earlier in the week, Survé also said he intended to sue the FSCA. The authority, in turn, has said it will defend itself if any such legal action is brought.

In an emailed response to questions from Fin24 on Friday, Survé said he had never implied that Ramaphosa was part of the raid.

However, he said, he had been "been presented with sufficient evidence to show that … Gordhan has had several meetings, and with numerous people, including FSCA officials that indicate he had a hand in the matter".

Asked what evidence he had to indicate this, he responded: "The evidence will be presented at the appropriate time and in the appropriate forum."

When asked about an apparent change in tone towards the president, after having said, publicly, that reporters in the Independent stable were intending to publish information on Ramaphosa ahead of the raid, Survé said editors and reporters had told him they had "sensitive information about several powerful high-ranking political figures" and had done so "as a matter of professional courtesy".

'The Prime Minister'

"Reporters have clarified this to confirm that their information pertains to Minister Gordan (often referred to as the Prime Minister)," he said.

He told Fin24 he was not at liberty to disclose any further information, as the journalists were required to protect their sources.

He also claimed the FSCA had misrepresented information to a judge, adding that "several of them pretended to be police officers" upon arrival at the premises for the raid. Staff were intimidated, Survé said.

On Friday, the Office of the Chief Justice issued a statement denying previous allegations by Survé that Judge PAL Gamble, who issued the warrants, was friends with Gordhan. Gamble said he had never met the minister.  

The FSCA could not immediately be reached outside of normal office hours to respond to the latest allegations.

Survé said Sekunjalo had lodged a complaint with the FSCA regarding manipulation of the AYO share price by "asset managers and other parties […] yet we were the ones raided".

While the FSCA has not elaborated on the information it was seeking, according to Sekunjalo, the raid is related to AYO Technology Solutions, which listed on the JSE in 2017 after receiving a R4.3bn investment by state-owned asset manager the Public Investment Corporation. AYO is a subsidiary of a subsidiary of African Equity Empowerment Investments, which in turn is held by Sekunjalo.

The PIC earlier this year instituted a court application to claim back the R4.3bn, plus interest, that it had invested in AYO in 2017. AYO is opposing the claim.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
19.05
-0.8%
Rand - Pound
24.04
-0.6%
Rand - Euro
20.56
-0.4%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.37
-0.2%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.8%
Platinum
899.20
+0.3%
Palladium
999.25
-0.3%
Gold
2,209.51
+0.7%
Silver
24.55
-0.4%
Brent Crude
86.09
-0.2%
Top 40
68,080
+0.6%
All Share
74,278
+0.5%
Resource 10
56,967
+2.4%
Industrial 25
103,572
+0.3%
Financial 15
16,456
-0.4%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders