The former South African Revenue Service (SARS) spokesperson Adrian Lackay says he feels relieved now that a defamation lawsuit against him by his previous employer has been withdrawn.
SARS and its suspended commissioner Tom Moyane have withdrawn a R12-million defamation suit against Lackay for a submission he made in Parliament in 2015.
In his submission, Lackay had alleged that Moyane wilfully misled the country and Parliament. He also denied the existence of a rogue investigation unit with a secret account that spied on taxpayers.
This put him at loggerheads with Moyane, who suspended a number of prominent officials for their alleged involvement with the unit. Lackay says what happened as SARS was part of a broader campaign of state capture.
“We now know that in 2018 it was always so clear in 2014 when Moyane was appointed and in 2015 when I ultimately resigned but I am convinced that was the objective. And many voices like my own they try to silence, many people were taken out of institutions like SARS, the Hawks, the NPA and law enforcement in general and many people like my former colleagues Irvin Pillay and Johan van Loggenberg still face criminal charges, so we still have to contend with that and fight for people’s rights.”
