Journalist’s book launch hit by protests over Sars ‘rogue unit’

What was set to be the launch of a book about state capture on Thursday turned on the author‚ as protestors gathered to ask about his reporting on the so-called SARS “rogue unit”.

Protesters held up placards at the launch of investigative journalist Stephan Hofstatter’s book ‘Licence To Loot - How The Plunder Of Eskom And Other Parastatals Almost Sank South Africa’ at Love Books in Melville‚ Johannesburg.

“When did you switch from pro-corruption to anti-corruption?”‚ “[Hofstatter] is a Tom Moyane [former Sars commissioner] stooge” and “He [Hofstatter] printed lies to get those fighting capture removed”‚ some of the placards read.

It was not immediately clear who had staged the protest.

The Sunday Times previously admitted the newspaper made several errors in its reporting on the National Research Group (which was dubbed the “rogue unit”) within Sars.

It was not the first time that Hofstatter came under fire. Investigative journalist Jacques Pauw lambasted Hofstatter and others for their reporting on the alleged “rogue unit” in the Sunday Times in his best-selling book ‘The President’s Keepers’.

This is a developing story.