"You can arrest me now if you want to": Gordhan

"No, no, no. You can arrest me now if you want to. But what have I done wrong? That is the question," he told interviewer Justice Malala at an event in Cape Town. 

Gordhan is involved in a public spat with the Hawks around the establishment of the so-called SARS rogue unit during his tenure as commissioner of the South African Revenue Service. 

The minister has been criticised for refusing to present himself to the Hawks last month - to receive a warning statement in connection with the investigation. 

But Gordhan said the public should know that his decision was based on sound legal advice. 

"You've heard (former Constitutional Court) judge Kriegler both write about this and talk about this outside the Hawks office last week that I am not required to go there personally. Secondly, all the questions have been asked, all the questions have been answered. Thirdly, in every piece of correspondence of substance between my lawyers and the Hawks and the Prosecuting Authority there is a line there that says 'should you need any more information please contact us'. They haven't yet." 

Gordhan reiterated that the Hawks are welcome to contact him should they require any additional information.

"I don't have to be dragged through a cordon of press people or whatever it is, just to show the world that the Hawks have got this chap here," he said. 

Gordhan also lashed out at a campaign waged against 'certain individuals'.  

"Tom Moyane, who is the head of the South African Revenue Service, laid a complaint sometime in 2014, or thereabouts, with the Hawks. Since then, you had a newspaper which carried an 18-month campaign against certain individuals. At the end of the 18 month period that newspaper had to apologise on one whole page for what it had done. It didn't have proof for some of the stuff it was accusing people of," Gordhan said. 

"So as we sit today, what is the problem? Who is accused of what?" 

Gordhan said there might be people stealing hundreds of millions of rands and getting away with it. But as far as he knows, none of the people being investigated by the Hawks in connection with the 'rogue unit' have stolen a cent. 

"So why the disproportionate treatment? And what motivates it?" Gordhan wanted to know. 

Gordhan once again stated that he is more than willing to comply with all his legal obligations. 

"I have good legal advice. I am not just doing this as a whim and fancy. I am doing this in accordance with the interpretation of the law," he said.