Gordhan never backed down when fighting for a good cause: Maharaj

Former Transport Minister and anti-apartheid activist Mac Maharaj has described former Minister Pravin Gordhan as a leader who never backed down when fighting for a good cause.

Maharaj spoke at Gordhan’s Special Official Funeral Category 2, which is currently underway at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre in Durban.

Gordhan died at a Johannesburg hospital last week at the age of 75 after a battle with cancer.

Maharaj says the corrupt hurled everything at Gordhan.

He says, “Without the exposures by the media, without the exposure and the fight back mounted by Pravin and his formidable team at Treasury, his deputy Mcebisi Jonas, Lungisa Fuzile and the SARS team, without them our beloved country could have become a banana republic governed by an autocratic regime adorned with a thick leaf of a hollowed out democracy.”

Maharaj says, “This is an occasion to recognize some hard truth. The corrupt hurled everything at PG to rubbish a person’s identity. Neither that nor the abuse showered on him shook him. Pravin remained steadfast. That didn’t deter Pravin, he was a man of steel forged in the furnace against a lawless system whose world was defined by the colour of men’s skin.”

He also called on the ANC to put its house in order and become fit for purpose.

Maharaj was highlighting the role his long-time friend played in exposing State Capture and fighting against corruption.

He says Gordhan at one stage stood alone, while some in the African National Congress (ANC) who shared his aversion to what was happening chose to stay silent.

Maharaj says Gordhan exposed the state capture linked to the Gupta family and led the fightback.

“Without them, our beloved country could have become a banana republic governed by an autocratic regime, adorned with a fig leaf of a hollowed-out democracy. The corrupt hurled everything at PG. Neither the actions of a captured Public Protector, SARS, SAPS, the NPA, and the power of the presidency to concoct fake intelligence to rubbish a person’s identity; neither that nor the abuse showered on him shook him,” he adds.- Reporting by Diteboho Ntimane and Tracy Valaydham

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