President Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday applauded the turnaround of the South African Revenue Service (Sars), saying its rebuilding illustrates the value of commissions of inquiry.

Ramaphosa wrote in his weekly letter to the nation that the commission of inquiry into Sars unearthed wrongdoing and proposed steps to ensure that there was no recurrence.

Last week, Ramaphosa visited the Sars National Command Centre in Tshwane to commend and congratulate its staff and leadership on their work.

In 2018, Ramaphosa appointed a commission of inquiry into Sars headed by Judge Robert Nugent.

He highlighted that when the commission began with its work, Sars was crippled by “political interference, leadership purges were commonplace, and specialist enforcement capacity had been substantially dismantled”.

Ramaphosa gave credit to Sars' leadership and staff for diligently implementing the commission’s recommendations.

He pointed out that in the last financial year, Sars achieved the highest revenue collection in the tax authority’s history, collecting R2.3-trillion.

“These revenues collected into the fiscus return to our citizens as lifeblood. Basic services are delivered, social grants are paid out to society’s most vulnerable, public infrastructure is built and maintained, and the machinery of government is kept running,” he stated.

Sars’ turnaround had shown what is possible with a “clear mission, committed leadership and capable people”, he added.

He said in many ways Sars was a standard-bearer for a capable State.

“It has been a trailblazer in the use of technology to construct a citizen-friendly ecosystem, making it easier for taxpayers to meet their obligations. It is little wonder that Sars is regarded as one of the best tax authorities in the world,” he said.

Seven years since the Nugent Commission issued its recommendations, nearly all the recommendations had been implemented, Ramaphosa said.

“Among the key recommendations were restoring capable independent leadership and governance, restoring compliance and enforcement capabilities, modernising systems, and improving efficiency and services to taxpayers,” he said.

As a consequence, the tax authority had achieved a turnaround that had exceeded expectations, he noted.

Five years ago, public trust in Sars stood at 48%, currently it was around 75%, he said, with attitudes towards tax compliance continuing to improve.

Ramaphosa noted Sars’ role in South Africa’s exit from the Financial Action Task Force (FAFT) grey list and in the sovereign credit ratings upgrade from S&P last year.

“Certainty in tax policy and honesty and efficiency in tax administration is a key consideration for investors looking to bring their business to our country. It sends a strong signal that South Africa is serious about institutional integrity and regulatory certainty. This is confidence that is hard to price, but easy to feel when a core institution like Sars regains public and investor trust,” he said.

Ramaphosa pointed out that for citizens, an efficient tax administration translated into a more “reliable” revenue stream for grants, infrastructure and basic services.

For businesses, he said this meant fairness and predictability.

“As we continue in our efforts to build an ethical, capable State and prevent a recurrence of that dark period in our nation’s history, we will look to Sars as an example of what can be done when institutional integrity is restored. Just as State capture took place over a prolonged period of time, the work of rebuilding will not happen overnight,” he said.