Eskom rot can’t be left unchecked
In a twist of poetic justice reminiscent of the Caesarean era, former finance minister Pravin Gordhan was pitted against principals who are overseeing shenanigans at Eskom that have sunk the reputation of the utility to an all-time low.
It is public sentiment that the reinstatement of Brian Molefe as CEO defies logic, after he willingly resigned last year, in what he said was “in the interest of good governance” after his credibility took a hammering.
Molefe had been associated with allegations of state capture after the public protector’s report revealed his close relationship with the Gupta family.
When he was finance minister before President Jacob Zuma sacked him in March, Gordhan was known to have stood his ground in a bid to stop the looting of public funds at state-owned enterprises, to benefit the Guptas and their political cronies and puppets.
As a result, it is no secret the battles that Gordhan mounted while heading the Treasury to stop wasteful expenditure had earned him enemies.
The jury is still out whether Zuma used a fake intelligence report to fire Gordhan in his infamous cabinet reshuffle.
Today, as a member of the portfolio committee on public enterprises, Gordhan is wellinformed about the operations of these entities that he previously butted heads with to uncover any rot.
To describe the explanations on how Molefe was reinstated after he had resigned as Eskom CEO and served a short stint as an MP, as implausible, is an understatement.
Molefe’s actions have mutated from a resignation to an early retirement. Lately it has been explained as unpaid leave, as Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown and Eskom board chairman Ben Ngubane tried to defend the indefensible.
We welcome the tough approach that MPs have taken to get to the bottom of this and their suggestion for an inquiry into Eskom’s affairs.
The trio’s arrogant actions could be the tip of the iceberg and further investigations must be considered. With the backdrop of MPs having recently uncovered corruption at SABC, a systematic clean-up of all public enterprises is necessary. The looting frenzy must come to an end.