Mysterious blackout at Pauw’s book launch

The launch of journalist Jacques Pauw’s bestselling book The President’s Keepers was cut short after a mysterious power blackout hit Hyde Park Mall in Johannesburg on Wednesday night.

About 1 000 people who attended the Exclusive Books event were left baffled when the interview between former Business Day editor Peter Bruce and Pauw was abruptly cut short when the entire mall was plunged into darkness – apart from the camera lights and hundreds of cellphone lights.

An announcement was eventually made that power utility Eskom had been performing maintenance work on a nearby powerline.

Also noted by several attendees was the sudden cut in cellphone signal as several minutes crawled on in the darkness.

Pauw was in the middle of a discussion with Bruce about details in his book revealing the extent of corruption in South Africa’s law enforcement agencies, particularly in the State Security Agency (SSA) as well as in police intelligence.

The author said he expected law enforcement agencies to come down hard on him in the courts.

“I might spend the next two or three years of my life in court. Not that I wish to be in court.” – Citizen reporter

I can’t see how they can charge me for publishing false information. If I didn’t publish true information, it cannot be a crime. Jacques Pauw Author of The President’s Keepers