South Africa’s DP says time to rebuild confidence in country

The dropping of fraud charges against South Africa’s finance minister Pravin Gordhan this week provides a chance to rebuild confidence in Africa’s most industrialised economy, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa told parliament on Wednesday.

Gordhan, popular in financial markets, was due in court this week on charges he fraudulently approved early retirement for a deputy tax commissioner but prosecutors dropped the case because new evidence suggested he had not acted unlawfully.