I don’t take Eskom job lightly, says new chair
THE new Eskom board chairman Jabu Mabuza said he was humbled to receive a call asking if he would be willing to take on the job as head of the power utility’s board, but that it was not a task he accepted lightly.
Mabuza‚ who has been credited with the strong turnaround of Telkom in recent years‚ said on Saturday after the announcement that there was a general consensus across society that work needed to be done in terms of turning the South African economy around. Eskom was a key part of the economy‚ he said.
“I was quite humbled when I was asked to participate to find a solution in leading Eskom‚” Mabuza said.
“Eskom is a part of our daily lives and any problem that affects Eskom‚ affects everyone of us. I accepted‚ but not lightly. I understand that this is a very‚ very big challenge – bigger than anything I have ever been involved in.”
Mabuza said he would continue to serve as chairman of Telkom.
“I am still chairman of Telkom. Telkom has a great board‚ a great management and the strategies are clear‚ the business plan is clear and we’ve got a strong balance sheet.
“We are dealing with some issues‚ but I have no doubt in my mind that Telkom will continue to do well.
“But I do recognise that a good board is just one of the most important things to try and address the issues of governance and leadership.
“Outside of that we need financial and business discipline. We do need a competent management and the right people at the right places‚ doing the right things‚” he said.
Mabuza said he had “always been willing to do that which I have to do in the national interest” when asked if he considered the task of clearing up the corruption at Eskom daunting.
Along with Mabuza‚ an entirely new board has been appointed and new acting group CEO Phakamani Hadebe will replace Sean Maritz‚ Eskom’s head of IT who has been acting in the position since October.
The new board has been given three months to appoint a permanent group chief executive and group chief financial officer.
The board has also been directed to “immediately remove all Eskom executives who are facing allegations of serious corruption and other acts of impropriety”.
This includes recently reinstated head of group capital Matshela Koko and suspended CFO Anoj Singh.
Mabuza concluded the interview by saying he hoped interventions at Eskom could solve the issues plaguing the parastatal‚ but that it was “no small task”. —
THE appointment of Jabu Mabuza as the new Eskom board chairman brings hope that our troubled stateowned energy provider can be rescued from near collapse.
Mabuza was appointed with 13 other new board members – South Africans of good repute, drawn from a diverse group of professionals. They include Sifiso Dabengwa, Sindi Mabaso-Koyana, Mark Lamberti, Professor Tshepo Mongalo, Professor Malegapuru Makgoba, Busisiwe Mavuso, Nelisiwe Magubane, Dr Rod Crompton, George Sebulela, Dr Pulane Molokwane, Dr Banothile Makhubela and Jacky Molisane.
South Africans are pinning their hopes on this team to turn around the fortunes of this critical parastatal.
Eskom has been looted and mismanaged so badly that its finances are in crisis.
A report presented to Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown two months ago, painted an alarming picture of funding difficulties and declining liquidity, driven primarily by poor governance at Eskom. The report showed that the state-owned company would only be left with R1.2-billion cash by the end of November last year when it required R20-billion.
It estimated that Eskom would move into a negative liquidity position of about R5-billion by the end of this month, raising questions on whether Eskom would be able to pay its salaries and other operating costs going forward.
Countering this downward spiral, the government issued a statement on Saturday confirming that a meeting was held last Friday – attended by President Jacob Zuma, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba and Brown – where “immediate measures to strengthen governance and management” at Eskom were ordered.
“This is the first step towards restoring confidence in the company, improving its financial position and restoring its operational performance,” the Presidency announced.
The new board has a clear mandate to appoint a permanent group CEO and group chief financial officer within the next three months. In the meantime, Phakamani Hadebe – the man credited with turning around the once-troubled Land Bank – will act as CEO.
The board was also assigned to “immediately remove all Eskom executives who are facing allegations of serious corruption and other acts of impropriety, including Matshela Koko and Anoj Singh”.
Zuma allowed his cronies, the corrupt Gupta brothers, to loot Eskom.
Speaking as chair of the inter-ministerial committee on SOE reform, Ramaphosa said: “We are confident this intervention will restore the important contribution Eskom makes to our economy. We are determined to address the damage that has been done to this institution and place it on a new path of efficiency and integrity.”
It is clear that the new ANC leadership under Ramaphosa really means business. Ramaphosa is walking the talk and setting the ANC and the country on a new path. Within a month of being elected ANC president, Ramaphosa has shown himself to be a man of action.
Now our law enforcement agencies have to go after all the rogue elements within Eskom and all the corrupt individuals who looted the parastatal.