Inquiry into Trillian boss reaches impasse
• Stalemate over provision of documents leads Tokyo Sexwale to say he will resign as chairman and await a judicial investigation into state capture
Trillian chairman Tokyo Sexwale has thrown in the towel on the investigation into the company’s CE, Eric Wood, following Wood’s refusal to hand over further documents to the head of the independent investigation, Geoff Budlender.
The investigation followed allegations that Wood had prior knowledge of the December 2015 firing of then finance minister Nhlanhla Nene and that he and others were engaged in an attempt to capture the Treasury together with business associates, the Guptas.
There are countless other accusations of fraud and corruption against Trillian, including that the company billed Transnet and Eskom for fictitious projects.
A portion of the proceeds of these contracts is believed to have provided Gupta-owned Tegeta with the funds to purchase Optimum mine.
On Thursday, Sexwale said Budlender would submit a final report to him in June but they both agreed the investigation was limited in what it could achieve because it had limited powers. He said that on receiving the report, he would step down as chairman.
Wood and Trillian management handed over “thousands of pages” of documentation, he said. However, they had reached a point where they refused to hand over additional documentation because they wanted the right to appear before Budlender and to call and crossexamine witnesses.
Budlender instead continued to request further documentation from Trillian, which Wood refused to provide.
On Thursday, Budlender repeated an earlier statement that Wood and Trillian had not co-operated with the investigation. “They haven’t provided documents that I have been requesting since January.
“I am continuing as best I can and will produce a report on what I’ve been able to establish,” Budlender said.
Sexwale said he was not critical of Woods and neither condoned nor condemned his conduct. Both Woods and Budlender “had a [valid] point” on how the investigation should proceed. “Management have never said they would not cooperate,” he said.
He now placed his faith in a judicial commission of inquiry into state capture, which — as suggested by former public protector Thuli Madonsela — should be headed by a judge appointed by Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng, Sexwale said.
“The president is conflicted... He should not be anywhere near a commission of inquiry.”