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SARS denies leaking Zuma info
26/02/2007 17:12 - (SA)
Johannesburg - The South African Revenue Service
(SARS) has emphatically rejected allegations that it divulged information to the media about the tax affairs of ANC deputy president Jacob Zuma.
It said the Income Tax Act specifically prohibited any SARS official from engaging in such practice.
"SARS regularly receives media enquiries about specific taxpayers or taxpaying entities. "SARS applies a standard and consistent procedure in dealing with such enquiries. "The same approach was applied when media enquiries were received about Mr Zuma," SARS stated.
It added: "SARS has a proven record of integrity, fairness and impartiality and we remain proud of this reputation. "These values underpin SARS's conduct at all times.
"SARS issues more than 70 000 summonses to taxpayers per year requesting them to provide information on income acquired or to submit their
returns. "For the current financial year SARS has been engaged in 413 matters
before court. Of these, 359 convictions were obtained.
"In none of these instances has SARS been accused of violating the confidentiality provisions of the Income Tax Act," it stated.
"At the same time, SARS must appeal to those raising allegations publicly about SARS's conduct to familiarise themselves with the Income Tax Act in order to make better informed public statements.
"When a particular tax matter appears before court it becomes a matter for public record and part of the judicial process." On Sunday, the Sunday Independent reported that SARS had served Zuma with a summons after he apparently failed to submit his tax return.
The report said that the summons questioned the completeness of Zuma's disclosure of his income and his failure to submit a tax return.
According to the Independent, Zuma's attorney Michael Hulley collected the summons from the Durban magistrate's court on Wednesday.
Following Wednesday's summons, Hulley struck a deal with SARS that the information it requested would be furnished in early April, the newspaper reported. - Sapa / I-Net Bridge
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