Van Loggerenberg told the inquiry that he was a Sars official between November 1998 and February 2015 where he served in various capacities from the age of 29 to 44.
Cape Town - Former Sars executive Johann van Loggerenberg on Wednesday testified virtually at the parliamentary inquiry into the fitness of suspended Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane to hold office.
Van Loggerenberg told the inquiry that he was a Sars official between November 1998 and February 2015 where he served in various capacities from the age of 29 to 44.
“My last job at Sars before my resignation was group executive: tax and customs enforcement investigation. I managed five Sars investigative units in this role at the time of my resignation,” he said.
Van Loggerenberg also said he heard over the radio that Mkhwebane had issued her report on the investigation into the “rogue unit” at Sars.
He noted that before concluding her investigation Mkhwebane had expressed clear views about the unit as being “rogue unit at various times, including saying that people have died”.
“This meant to anybody that this unit was involved in murder of people or plot murders of people one way or the other.”
Van Loggerenberg said the person who knew about the unit was him as he had been responsible for its managerial function between 2008 and 2014 except months he was assigned another role.
“I had approached the Office of the Public Protector in 2016 already as a whistleblower,” he added.
The former Sars executive told the inquiry that he held a day-long interview with officials from the Office of the Public Protector and later furnished them with documents.
“What I provided the Office of the Public Protector was more than sufficient evidence. Had it been taken into account I doubt we would have seen the report of 2019/20,” he said about Mkhwebane’s report on the “rogue unit”.
Van Loggerenberg noted that Mkhwebane had in her report stated she had sought information from him but could not find him at his last address after using her subpoena powers.
“I say now, today, that she had in her possession reams of evidence and documents which I provided to her office which included my contact details in full such as email address and a mobile number.”
He also charged that before the release of the report he had written to Mkhwebane warning her about defamatory statements she made about the Sars investigation unit, and that she had replied via her attorneys.
“She could have contacted any of the two attorneys whose email addressed are on the email,” he said before adding that his residential address had not changed and he had used the same cellphone number for decades.
Van Loggerenberg also said his affidavit detailed what he believed Mkhwebane should have known had she engaged with him before concluding her report.
“My complaint which has brought me to the committee is to consider… if any of you can put yourselves in my shoe for the last eight years and Public Protector comes and makes a finding which affected you directly and other people without even bothering to call, hear you or ask anything.
“It would be tantamount to this committee sitting without allowing Ms Mkhwebane to participate in this process and not affording opportunity to her legal representative cross- examining,” he said.
Van Loggerenberg said Mkhwebane should have afforded him sight of what the claims were, but she failed to do so.
“I was not heard once again in this whole saga. I was simply disregarded as if I did not exist, as if I was completely irrelevant,” he said.
Van Loggenrenberg will continue with his testimony on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Mkhwebane’s legal representative Dali Mpofu asked that constitutional exert Hassen Ebrahim return to take the witness stand as soon as possible.
Mpofu said Ebrahim, who testified on Tuesday about the importance of the Office of the Public Protector, was technically under cross examination.
“If he never comes back his evidence must be discarded,” he said.
Cape Times