2 ministers in Eskom graft probe

JOHANNESBURG – Two serving Cabinet members are allegedly implicated in a wide-ranging investigation into corruption that was launched early last year by departing Eskom Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Andre de Ruyter.

De Ruyter reported the alleged involvement of both Cabinet members to his political chief, Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan, insiders have revealed.

In a interview with eNCA, which was broadcast last week, De Ruyter said he had reported information about the involvement of a ‘high-level politician’ to ‘a minister’, The minister, he said, looked at a colleague and remarked: “It was probably inevitable that it would come out.”

When De Ruyter was asked by the interviewer whether the politician he was referring to was a Cabinet member, he replied that he ‘did not want to go there’.

The minister to whom De Ruyter referred is Gordhan, City Press’ sister publication Rapport has learnt from two impeccable sources.

Corruption

When asked to comment, Gordhan said that he detested corruption in all its forms and that De Ruyter’s allegations now had to be investigated by Eskom’s Board. However, he did not deny that he was the minister who was informed of the corruption by De Ruyter.

Although De Ruyter only spoke of a single ‘high-level politician’ in the eNCA interview, it has been established that two politicians were in fact involved in the investigation, both of them serving in the Cabinet. Their names are being withheld for legal reasons.

Sources say the investigation into the two Cabinet members is complicated by the fact that they cover their tracks very well. The money is allegedly channeled via close contacts and family members. The illegitimate child of one of the two is apparently used as a link, among other things.

The allegations were brought to light by an intelligence-driven private investigation. The alleged lack of support that Eskom received from law enforcement agencies forced De Ruyter to launch the investigation, which was kept going with money he raised from private donors.