Finance Minister Mboweni expects the new commissioner's appointment will restore SARS to a world-class organisation.
The National Treasury has announced the appointment of Edward Kieswetter as the Commissioner for South African Revenue Service (SARS) with effect from 1 May for a term of five years.
President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed Edward in terms of Section 6 of SARS. His decision was informed by the recommendation from the Minister of Finance Tito Mboweni.
The process for the appointment of the SARS Commissioner is informed by the South African Revenue Service Act and was guided by the recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry into Tax Administration and Governance by SARS chaired by retired Judge Robert Nugent.
According to a statement released by the National Treasury, the organisation is confident that the appointment process undertaken has integrity and all necessary disclosures were made and no conflicts of interest have been identified.
Treasury further stated that Edward emerged as the strongest candidate, based on his past experience as deputy commissioner for SARS between 2004 and 2009, and his subsequent track record of transformative leadership and his experience of turning around a large institution.
During his tenure at SARS, Edward established the Large Business Centre and High Net Worth Individual Unit, leading to both compliance and revenue collection improvements.
As group chief executive of Alexander Forbes Group Holdings he achieved a significant turnaround of the group, with particular attention to governance, integrity and restoring the group’s reputation.
President Ramaphosa said:
“We have every confidence that Mr Kieswetter has the experience, integrity and skills required to turn SARS around by restoring revenue collection, redirecting operations toward innovation, developing future leaders for the organisation, and restoring SARS’ credibility and integrity.”
Minister Mboweni has wished Edward success in this endeavour, and says that he looks forward to seeing SARS re-established as a respected tax collector and improved revenue collection outcomes.
“I expect him to act without fear or favour, to restore and defend the integrity of SARS and to uphold taxpayer rights when carrying out his duties as the Commissioner, by implementing the recommendations of the Nugent Commission and restoring SARS to a world-class organisation,” Minister Mboweni said.
Edward was on the 2015 CFO Awards panel of judges.
Read more: Panel of judges for CFO Awards 2015 meet as JSE Limited
