Former deputy minister of finance, Mcebisi Jonas, said on Wednesday patronage networks and the abuse of influence is eroding service delivery and job creation in South Africa.
Speaking at AHI's conference on small-and medium-sized enterprises, Jonas also said he was angry when he learnt that he was fired, but that "we all expected to be fired".
Jonas was the keynote speaker at the event.
He added that "everything we did was to advance the cause of the country".
Jonas was the first keynote speaker at the event.
Last week, Jonas and the finance minister, Pravin Gordhan, were fired in a late-night Cabinet reshuffle, along with nine ministers and nine deputy ministers. On Friday, S&P downgraded South Africa's credit rating to junk status. The rand also hit a three-week low.
His comments made waves at the conference, with the organisation sending out tweets from the address: