Former South African Revenue Service (Sars) Commissioner Tom Moyane has lost his bid to cross-examine Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan at the State Capture Commission of Inquiry.
In a ruling made on Tuesday morning, the Commission’s chairperson, Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, dismissed Moyane’s application on all grounds except one.
Zondo said he was uncertain about Gordhan’s claim that Moyane’s decision to lay charges against him for the controversial Sars rogue unit was based on malice.
He said he would therefore request further inputs from both Moyane and Gordhan before making a final determination.
Zondo’s ruling was generally scathing of Moyane’s application. He found that Moyane had failed to directly respond to most of Gordhan’s allegations against him.
Zondo also found that Moyane’s application did not show why cross-examining Gordhan was in the best interests of the Commission.
This is the latest in a series of Moyane’s bruising legal losses spanning more than a year.
He lost his bid to be reinstated as Sars Commissioner, including a bid to stop the work of the Nugent Commission into Sars affairs.