DA queries Zuma’s fringe benefits

THE DA is to ask the tax ombud‚ Judge Bernard Ngoepe‚ to investigate whether SARS has dragged its feet in determining if President Jacob Zuma owes tax on Nkandla.

Reports this weekend revealed that the South African Revenue Service (SARS) had begun an investigation into whether Zuma owed fringe benefits tax on improvements to his Nkandla homestead as far back as 2014.

“While President Zuma was forced to pay a measly R7.8-million towards the full cost of turning his Nkandla home into the palace that it is‚ the Income Tax Act defined fringe benefit tax plus penalties and interest that President Zuma is liable to pay is estimated at R63.9-million‚” DA deputy spokesman on finance Alf Lees said yesterday.

Lees said Zuma had evaded a direct response on whether he had declared fringe benefits tax on Nkandla by hiding behind the confidentiality of taxpayer tax matters.

“Whilst the DA fully supports the principle of the confidentiality of tax matters‚ this confidentiality must not be abused by [SARS commissioner] Tom Moyane to hide SARS failure to apply the Income Tax Act in relation to his long-standing and close friend‚ President Zuma,” Lees said.

“By doing so‚ Moyane could be complicit in tax evasion which is a criminal offence.

“We believe that the 2014 SARS investigation into fringe benefits on Nkandla accrued to President Zuma has not been professionally dealt with.

“The DA will continue to ensure that the president is held to account for benefitting from the upgrades to Nkandla.” – TMG Digital

This must not be abused by [SARS commissioner] Tom Moyane