Dear Editor
The Governor of the South African Reserve Bank (SARB), Lesetja Kganyago, today briefed parliament on the SARB investigation into allegations that President Ramaphosa contravened Exchange Control Regulations by holding US dollars at his farm for a period exceeding legislated limits.
The briefing followed an obtuse media release by SARB on 18 August, wherein the SARB stated that the President did not violate any exchange control regulations but refused to disclose their full report on the matter.
Despite the DA’s efforts to obtain the report — which included correspondence with the Governor himself and filing a Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) application — the SARB has remained steadfast in its unwillingness to disclose the document or sufficient information to ensure that the integrity of the SARB has not been compromised.
It is therefore that, during today’s meeting, I presented a sequence of questions to Governor Kganyago.
These questions included:
- Section 33 of the Reserve Bank Act prohibits directors, officers, and employees from the Bank from disclosing information. Not the Minister. Was the report made available to (any) Minister or the President himself?
- Mr Hazim left the money as a security deposit. Where is the contract and why was cash taken and not a bank guarantee, and who carried the risk of the dollars?
- Did the SARB consider how an entitlement can be contingent as envisaged in regulation 6(5), and did the SARB consider the duty in regulation 6(5) against delaying a contingency from eventuating?
- Did the SARB consider the impact its reasoning could have on money laundering and how persons can avoid declaring foreign currency by simply stipulating conditions in a contract?
- Has any action been taken previously against any individual or entity even though a transaction has not been perfected.
Governor Kganyago’s responses were evasive, incomplete and unconvincing.
The Governor did however admit that the SARB had not seen any contract, other than an invoice, that outlined the conditions of the transaction in question, which raises doubts about the integrity of the investigation. Moreover, he offered no insight into any precedents set by previous investigations.
South Africa’s financial stability hinges on the transparency and integrity of its Central Bank. It is an institution that cannot be left to operate in a shroud of ambiguity. Given that our attempts to extract transparency through other channels have been futile, the DA will now turn to the court to review the SARB decision.
The DA will not let this matter rest. South Africans have a right to know what actually happened at Phala-Phala and that includes knowing whether the President broke any financial law he is entrusted to uphold.
Regards
Dr Dion George MP
DA Shadow Minister of Finance
Silver Agent
Diary of an Englishman after he moves to South Africa….
**August 1**: Just got transferred with work from London, UK to our new home in Phalaborwa, Limpopo, South Africa. Now this is a town that knows how to live! Beautiful, sunny days and warm, balmy evenings. I watched the sunset from a deckchair by our pool yesterday. It was beautiful. I’ve finally found my new home. I love it here.
**September 1:** Really heating up now. It got to 31 today. No problem though. Living in air-conditioned home, driving air-conditioned car. What a pleasure to see the sun every day like this. I’m turning into a sun-worshipper – no blasted rain like back in London! Had the back yard landscaped with tropical plants today. Lots of palms and rocks. No more mowing lawns for me! Another scorcher today, but I love it here. It’s Paradise !
**October 1:** The temperature hasn’t been below 35 all week. How do people get used to this kind of heat? At least today it’s windy though. Keeps the flies off a bit. Acclimatizing is taking longer than we expected. Fell asleep by the pool yesterday. Got third degree burns over 60% of my body. Missed three days off work. What a dumb thing to do. Got to respect the old sun in a climate like this!
**October 25:** This wind is a bastard. It feels like a giant fucking blow dryer. And it’s hot as hell! The home air conditioner is on the blink and the repair man charged R200 just to drive over and tell me he needs to order parts from @#$# Johannesburg. The wife & the kids are complaining.
**October 30:** The temperature’s up around 40 and the parts still haven’t arrived for the fucking air conditioner. House is an oven so we’ve all been sleeping outside by the pool for 3 nights now. Bleeding R4 million house and we can’t even go inside. Why the hell did I ever come here?
**November 4:** Finally got the fucking air-conditioner fixed. It cost R1,500 and gets the temperature down to around 35 degrees. Stupid repairman. Fucking thief. If one more smart bastard says ‘Hot enough for you today?’ I’m going to fucking throttle him. Fucking heat! By the time I get to work, the car radiator is boiling over, my fucking clothes are soaking fucking wet and I smell like baked cat. Fucking place is the end of the Earth.
**November 9:** Tried to run some errands after work, wore shorts, and sat on the black leather upholstery in my car. I thought my fucking backside was on fire. I lost 2 layers of flesh, all the hair on the backs of my legs and off my fucking behind. Now the car smells like burnt hair, fried bum and baked cat. The Weather report might as well be a fucking recording – hot and sunny. Hot and sunny, Hot and fucking sunny. It’s been too hot to do anything for 2 bleeding months and the weatherman says it might really warm up next week. Fuck!!
**November 15:** Doesn’t it ever rain in this darn place? Water restrictions will be next, so my R5,000 worth of palms might just dry up and blow into the fucking pool. The only things that thrive in this hell-hole are the fucking flies. You don’t dare open your mouth for fear of swallowing half a dozen of the little buzzards!
**November 20:** Welcome to HELL! It got to 45 degrees today. Now the air conditioner is gone in my car. The repair man came to fix it and said, ‘Hot enough for you today?’ I wanted to shove the car up his backside. Anyway, had to spend the R2,500 of the mortgage payment to bail me out of jail for assaulting the stupid fool. Fucking PHALABORWA! What kind of sick, demented idiot would want to live here!
**December 1:** WHAT!!!! The FIRST day of Summer!!!!
You are fucking kidding me, right?
Valley Guardian
Bliksem – to hit. This is a derogative term meaning to hit or punch someone.Example: “I’ll bliksem you!”