Succession rumour mill in overdrive as Hawks take on Gordhan

THREE names keep cropping up: Sifiso Buthelezi, Brian Molefe and Sizwe Nxasana. All are contenders for the position of finance minister — should those intent on ousting Pravin Gordhan succeed.

Since the Hawks started pursuing Gordhan in February, speculation has been rife about possible replacements. It reached fever pitch this week when two counts of fraud were levelled at Gordhan.

It is widely believed that the charges have been cooked up to dislodge Gordhan from the National Treasury.

Gordhan, however, is defiant, saying in a statement that he would continue with his job until the president informed him otherwise.

The frontrunner for the position of finance minister is Buthelezi, a member of parliament’s portfolio committee on finance since early this year.

In an interview this week, Buthelezi denied that he had designs on the post or that it had been offered to him.

“I have only read about this in the media, but I personally have never been approached by anyone with such an offer. It is just unfounded rumour,” Buthelezi said.

“I am a backbencher in parliament and just sit in the portfolio committee.”

But when Buthelezi was brought into parliament soon after the shortlived installation of Des van Rooyen in the finance minister’s post in December, rumours started flying that Buthelezi would replace Mcebisi Jonas as deputy finance minister.

Rumours that Buthelezi had told some people that he would be heading for the portfolio were grist to the mill.

Two sources at the Public Investment Corporation have previously confirmed that Buthelezi had in March and April phoned senior managers at the corporation introducing himself as their “next chairman”. Sifiso Buthelezi

“Those are all lies, blue lies. I’m a very private person. I could never do such a thing,” Buthelezi said on Friday.

Sources said the plan was for President Jacob Zuma to appoint someone sympathetic to his cause as deputy to Gordhan. Sizwe Nxasana

As chairman of the Public Investment Corporation, which controls R1.8-trillion in state employees’ assets, the deputy finance minister has considerable clout.

But the plan to replace Jonas with Buthelezi was foiled when Jonas went Brian Molefe public with allegations that he had been offered the finance minister’s job by the Gupta family — before it had been offered to Van Rooyen.

Jonas’s claims added fuel to allegations of state capture by the Gupta family, resulting in the public protector investigating the claims.

Buthelezi denied that he had ever been offered the position by Zuma.

“I know him from our days in exile, where I worked with him. When he became a member of the KwaZuluNatal provincial executive in 1994, I was his adviser.

“He’s never spoken to me about being finance minister.”

Molefe, who is CEO of Eskom, is also persistently tipped to succeed Gordhan. It is understood he was asked a few months ago to get ready to take over the finance minister’s job.

Molefe — a National Treasury insider from his days as a deputy director-general in the ’90s, and later as CEO of the PIC — is seen as having the credentials for the job.

But recent allegations that Eskom had unfairly favoured businesses owned by the Gupta family cast doubt on his suitability.

Molefe has also been an enthusiastic campaigner for banks to reopen facilities for the Gupta family’s businesses.

In August, at the release of Eskom’s results, Molefe said he was merely a friend of the family and a concerned citizen who opposed the unjust closure of the family’s accounts by South African banks.

According to the Mail & Guardian, the Guptas struck controversial deals with Transnet when Molefe was CEO.

This week, Molefe did not answer Business Times calls to his cellphone.

Nxasana only recently joined the list of potential successors to Gordhan. Two former senior cabinet ministers confirmed to Business Times that his name was being touted in connection with the position.

Nxasana ignored numerous phone calls and text messages seeking his comments on the matter.

He retired as CEO of FirstRand in 2014, and is currently chairman of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme .