Treasury will not discuss e-tolls in Parly today

In a statement on yesterday, ahead of its appearance in Parliament today, Treasury said it would neither be possible nor prudent for its officials to speak on the matter.

Last month, the North Gauteng High Court granted an urgent interdict against e-tolling, placing the project on hold until a full review can take place. The system would have kicked off on 30 April.

Cabinet announced the appointment of a committee, to be chaired by Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe, to coordinate all work around the GFIP. The committee is to look into issues such as the court decision, the implication of that decision, its impact on Sanral and the ability to pay back the debt incurred in setting up the toll roads.

"As a signal of the urgency and the seriousness with which Cabinet views the GFIP matter, the Director-General in the Presidency, Cassius Lubisi, who is also a member of the Cabinet committee, convened a meeting on Friday last week of all relevant officials to discuss the best possible way forward on the GFIP issue," said Treasury.

"In addition, some of the issues that committee members may want National Treasury officials to clarify are issues that will be dealt with during the second leg of the court hearing into the e-tolling case.

"Given these circumstances, any comment by the National Treasury officials on the GFIP issue would neither be prudent nor appropriate. We would ask all South Africans to exercise patience. The Cabinet Committee will report as soon as possible on the progress of its work."

The decision not to speak about the project follows from discussions with the chairperson of the portfolio committee, Thaba Mufamadi.

Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan will not be attending today's meeting as he will be accompanying Deputy President Motlanthe during his visit to Germany.