Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan has announced his intention to retire from active politics following the national and provincial elections on May 29.
Gordhan’s decision coincides with the submission of candidate lists by the ANC to the Independent Electoral Commission, following its recent list conference.
In an interview with Business Day, Gordhan confirmed his retirement, citing a desire to prioritize his family and health.
“I feel it is time to focus on my family and health. It is the end of 50 years of activism, but I will always remain an activist. It has been a great privilege to serve in various capacities and hopefully I can contribute by teaching what I know to new and younger generations,” Gordhan was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
Gordhan joins a growing list of veteran ANC MPs, including National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula and Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth, and People with Disabilities, who have signaled their plans to retire from politics after the elections.
At the time of Gordhan’s announcement, his department is overseeing the sale of SAA shares to the Takatso Consortium.
This week, the public enterprises portfolio committee disclosed that the legal opinion it acquired verified the confidentiality of documents pertaining to the sale of SAA shares.
Committee chairperson Khaya Magaxa stated that the committee will subsequently scrutinize the information provided in a closed session, focusing particularly on the Single Source Provider Application.
“This is due to the ongoing nature of the transaction and the absence of definitive outcomes,” Magaxa said.
Following a closed-door meeting held on Wednesday, the committee convened to deliberate on legal opinions provided by parliamentary legal services regarding the documents submitted by Gordhan.
Gordhan had corresponded with Magaxa, asserting that the documents requested by the committee were confidential and should be treated as such under a confidentiality regime.
“It is information relating to negotiating processes both in 2021 and currently, and disclosures of which may adversely affect those processes to the detriment of government and the public interest.
“Please note that negotiations on this transaction are continuing to take cognizance of current market conditions and revised valuations,” he wrote in his letter.
Gordhan further emphasized that in the absence of an agreed amended sale of shares agreement, the conditions outlined in the original sale of shares agreement remained legally binding.
However, he clarified that the appointment of Rand Merchant Bank as a transaction advisor and updates on strategic equity partners were not confidential and could be disclosed to the public.
Gordhan specified that the RMB evaluation report, Harith Expression of Interest, and Sale of Shares Agreement and its addenda were classified as confidential.
“I therefore request that the documents that we identified as confidential be subject to confidentiality regime.”
The Democratic Alliance has formally communicated with Magaxa, stating its decision to abstain from participating in any closed-door discussions regarding the SAA-Takatso deal until such time that such deliberations are made accessible to the public, including the media, and the share sale and purchase agreement along with other pertinent documents are disclosed.