It is with a deep sense of sadness that the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) learned of the death of former Minister of Public Enterprises, Mr Pravin Gordhan, who passed away in the early hours of this morning after a short illness.
The ACDP would like to pay tribute to Mr Gordhan for his many years of service to the nation. He led in an exemplary manner in many roles he held in public office. At the South African Revenue Service (SARS) he was initially a Deputy Commissioner, and later became the Commissioner, where he successfully transformed SARS into a world-class tax-collection agency.
In 2009, Mr Gordhan was appointed the Minister of Finance until 2014, when he was unceremoniously fired by then former President Jacob Zuma, only to be later re-appointed Minister of Finance to stabilise the South African economy. He also served as Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs from 2014 to 2017. In his last stint in government, he served as the Minister of Public Enterprises from February 2018 to June 2024.
Mr Gordhan was one of the few persons who stood boldly to expose and fight back against State Capture. Several unsuccessful attempts were made to discredit him and taint his public image, but this cannot, and will not, diminish the character of a principled man many came to know.
It was an honour to serve with Mr Gordhan over the years – in Parliament’s Standing Committee on Finance, when he would present the Budget, and later when he was an ordinary member of the Portfolio Committee on Public Enterprises, during the parliamentary oversight enquiry into state capture and corruption at Eskom in 2017. It was during this inquiry that I witnessed his relentless questioning, even of his African National Congress (ANC) colleagues, in order to expose the deep corruption at Eskom … ‘connecting the dots’ as he would say on many occasions. He later also gave evidence at the Zondo Commission of Enquiry where he estimated that state capture and corruption had cost the country R500bn over the years, laying it squarely at the door of President Zuma.
The ACDP will remember him as a diligent, hardworking, and principled public servant who served our people with pride. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Vanitha and daughters Anisha and Priyesha, his broader family, friends and colleagues in the ANC at this difficult time.
