Afternoon Drive withJoanne Joseph

The timing of the summons of three former Sars officials accused of spying on the now defunct Scorpions and the NPA is 'coincidental', according to Business Day political editor Natasha Marrian.

Speaking to Bongani Bingwa on The Breakfast Show, Marrian says the summonses came at a time where it was clear President Ramaphosa was going to act against suspended Sars commissioner Tom Moyane.

She adds that Moyane was the one responsible for laying the initial complaint, which lead to the charges against Ivan Pillay, Johan van Loggerenberg and Andries Janse van Rensburg.

Moyane is also listed as one of the witnesses included in the detailed indictment against the trio.

They appeared briefly court on Monday. The case has been postponed to 18 June.

The three stand accused of creating a 'backdoor' while installing surveillance cameras in order to spy on the Scorpions in 2007.

It seems as though it was designed to halt the re-entry of these officials into Sars, which was sort of a foregone conclusion, because they had been at the helm before their suspension and Moyane's entry.

— Natasha Marrian, Political Editor at Business Day

READ: Sars spy case postponed to June

It speaks to the urgency of dealing with the political independence of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and the Hawks. There are still issues lingering from the system from the previous administration.

— Natasha Marrian, Political Editor at Business Day

ALSO READ: Political Desk: Mark Kingon named acting Sars boss following Moyane suspension

Meanwhile, Marrian says the new Denel interim board announced by minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan is something to be optimistic about. She say this was expected, given the fractured relationship between Gordhan and former Denel chairperson Daniel Mantsha who resigned in March.

Find out why Gordhan and Mantsha had public spats