Eskom under fire for losses of billions
Power utility blames corrupt employees
Whistleblower Suzanne Daniels says poor management at Eskom has led to the parastatal losing money as there were no checks and balances on debt owed.
Daniels, who was head of legal services and compliance at Eskom, was fired after revealing a number of corrupt deals at the state utility.
Eskom yesterday reported a R2.3-billion loss in the past financial year and R19-billion in irregular expenditure since 2012.
“Why is there R19-billion in irregular expenditure while we had external auditors at the entity every now and again since 2012?” asked Daniels.
“What were they doing‚ why was this not noticed? There’s a lack of skills from the management‚ they could have picked up these things.
“They can’t even collect debt from the municipalities‚ there are no plans… there were negotiations with the municipalities but that was done haphazardly‚ hence we find ourselves in this situation.”
UDM leader Bantu Holomisa said Eskom must reveal what happened to the R19-billion. “They want to get sympathy from people, they must first tell us what happened to the R19-billion. Who got what‚ who pocketed the money?” said Holomisa.
The DA’s Natasha Mazzone said the losses were a result of years of corruption‚ mismanagement and bloated staff.
“Eskom’s latest financials once again reiterate the need for a complete turnaround strategy for South Africa’s energy sector‚” said Mazzone.
Political analyst Dr Somadoda Fikeni said a proper diagnosis of Eskom was needed.
“We can’t keep on changing the management and move them around while they are implicated in allegations of fraud. Eskom’s problems are affecting the country‚ not them. A solution is needed speedily‚” said Fikeni.
In its defence‚ the utility blamed corrupt individuals who have since left the entity.
In a statement Eskom said it had had 10 CEOs in 10 years and six boards in the same period. It said 10 implicated senior executives had left and finalisation of “outstanding disciplinary hearings relating to senior executives are being accelerated”. It further said 11 criminal cases had been opened‚ five involving nine senior executives.
“[There have been] a total of 1 049 outstanding disciplinary cases since April 2018‚ of which 628 have been finalised‚ resulting in 75 employee exits‚” said Eskom.
It said 239 whistle-blowing cases had been investigated‚ 122 of which had been concluded. “Disciplinary processes are under way in respect of 67 confirmed cases and remedial action has been taken against 25 staff doing business with Eskom. Seven of them have exited‚” said Eskom.
Energy expert Ted Blom said: “If the government is serious about slaying corruption then this [Eskom] is where the investigation needs to begin.”