The sloppiest mistakes the EFF made with Gordhan’s made-up Canadian bank account

The Citizen reported yesterday that News24 had fact-checked the EFF’s claims against minister of public enterprises Pravin Gordhan that led to their laying criminal charges against him, finding various reasons relating to the bank account number as to why such an account at Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) could not exist. Their detailed fact-check can be read here.

Now, on Thursday morning, The Daily Maverick has joined in and torn the Gordhan bank account allegations apart.

Among other discrepancies, Richard Poplak notes that the EFF “made up a bank account number that doesn’t correspond with anything that RBC would issue”, that the name attached to the account was not Pravin’s but “R Jamandas Gordhan”, and that they claim the account is located in Shebrook, Montreal, a place that does not exist. 

Poplak also notes that, if the EFF story were true, it would mean that Gordhan would have simply opened an account and deposited millions in it without any attempt to hide his tracks.

READ MORE: Why Malema’s charges against Gordhan are nonsense – report

If the EFF’s allegations against Gordhan are simply made-up, as the reports on News24 and The Daily Maverick would suggest, whether or not the party believed these details would never come to light is unclear. The Gordhan charges do not seem to be the work of political masterminds, unless I’m missing something.

While several journalists in South Africa have been subject to threats by the EFF, The Citizen, whose articles Julius Malema does occasionally respond to on Twitter, appear to be receiving the silent treatment.

Dr Mbuyiseni Ndlozi, who I was able to contact when I was working at a television production company before returning to journalism, has repeatedly ignored any attempts on my part to WhatsApp him or call him since I have become employed at The Citizen.

Whether this is because the EFF’s hatred for the publication is so intense that they can’t even bring themselves to communicate with us at all, or whether they consider us too small to be troubled with is unclear.

For this reason, in an attempt to get any comment from the EFF on the growing amount of accusations from media publications that they have simply made up Gordhan’s Canadian bank account, knowing that I would have no luck with Ndlozi, I called EFF Gauteng chairperson Mandisa Matshego for comment instead. It did not go well.

READ MORE: Malema wants to stop ‘inviting’ journos to EFF events so they can ‘feel safe’

“I don’t want us to patronise each other,” she began.

“You can’t call me about a case when you know who the complainants are,” she continued. I thought, that as a senior EFF member, she was, in fact, one of the complainants.

“The case has been opened at an SA police station, which is governed by law.

“When you open a case, I can’t phone you and ask you about your case.

“You are asking about a matter which is now residing with the South African police. There are laws that govern what happens when a case is open.”

I asked her which laws she was referring to. I tried to explain that I’m genuinely unaware of any law preventing a journalist from phoning a prominent member of a political party and asking about a case the party has lodged.

READ MORE: EFF refuses to meet Sanef over attacks on journalists

Despite the fact that I simply asked for an explanation of the laws she was referring to, she told me not to “patronise” her, and that I was “undermining her”.

She told me I was only calling her because I had failed to get through to the national leadership, which was in fact true.

“You have failed to collapse the EFF through your imperialist racist right-wing agenda,” she said.

“Next time you call, you must show me respect,” was her final word on the matter, before hanging up.

I was not able to ask her the questions I had hoped about the alleged Royal Bank of Canada account.

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