Cyril must act on damning report
PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa has made it clear that his mission over the next few months is to clean up corruption and grow the economy so that jobs can be created. It is not an easy task as it means that, at least until the 2019 election, the president’s mission will be to do just that.
Corruption has permeated through every level of government – local, district, provincial and national – and given the complicity of many politicians and government officials, the president will face resistance from those who seek to hide their corruption. The reality is that while Jacob Zuma – the chief architect of state capture and corruption – may have left office, his lieutenants and fellow travellers on state capture remain in office and in government.
For political reasons, Ramaphosa chose to keep tainted ministers like Nomvula Mokonyane and Bathabile Dlamini in his cabinet.
The emergence of the damning report on corruption at Transnet proves this point – that officials who were central to the Guptaled raid on state owned enterprises (SOEs) still occupy their positions. The report, which was produced by Mncedisi Ndlovu & Sedumedi (MNS) Attorneys, recommends that criminal charges be brought against former Transnet and Eskom CEO Brian Molefe and other individuals who were part of the corrupt Gupta network. These include former Transnet and Eskom chief financial officer Anoj Singh, Transnet board subcommittee chairperson Iqbal Sharma and Gupta stooge Salim Essa. The four are accused of paving the way for the Guptas to loot billions from our SOEs.
The report also recommends that Transnet recoups the money lost as a result of Molefe’s “misleading” of the Transnet board. This relates to a tender to build 1 064 locomotives which went from R38.6-billion to R54-billion. According to the report, the escalation of the tender “appears inexplicable, unreasonable and excessive”.
This is hardly surprising as we now know that Gupta companies benefited handsomely through kickbacks from the dodgy deals.
“Given [Molefe’s] previous position as the group chief executive, Transnet should recoup monies lost due to his conduct,” says the report. Molefe may have left Transnet and Eskom but those who assisted him through his corruption are still at Transnet.
They include Transnet CEO Siyabonga Gama who was the chief executive of Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) at the time. The MNS report recommends that Gama be disciplined for “being part of the team that misrepresented the true reasons and extent of the increase of the initial contract value”.
For our country to move forward, everyone who was part of the elaborate state capture project should be brought to book, regardless of their role in the process.
We are now paying the price for their corruption, through the VAT increase and the load-shedding we are experiencing. Add to that the fuel price and slow economic growth as a result of low investor confidence and the downgrading of our economic outlook by ratings agencies. Before he tackles the greater scourge of corruption within the state, Ramaphosa must start with the MNS report. It must be finalised and sent to law enforcement agencies without delay.