Fury at Eskom board no-show at Scopa session

ESKOM’s leadership is in hot water following a last-minute text to a parliamentary committee asking that it be excused from a meeting.

This infuriated the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) so much that MPs said the conduct by those tasked to oversee billions of rand at the parastatal had brought the credibility of the Eskom board into question.

The board was meant to brief Scopa on matters relating to previous allegations concerning chief operating officer Jan Oberholzer as well as cases referred to law enforcement agencies, contracts and lifestyle audits.

The drama began when Scopa chairperson Mkhuleko Mhlengwa notified the committee that Eskom board chairperson Malegapuru Makgoba had sent him a text message in the morning indicating that he wouldn’t make it to the meeting.

After informing the committee that Public Enterprises Minister Pravin

Gordhan was not sent an invitation to the meeting, Eskom chief executive Andre de Ruyter introduced his delegation without mentioning the board.

ANC MP Mervyn Dirks said the meeting had to be postponed because Gordhan was not sent a letter, adding that what made matters worse was that the board members who were present did not even constitute a quorum.

DA MP Alf Lees said: “I agree with honourable Dirks that we must try to reschedule.”

Hlengwa said although Eskom had sent documents, Makgoba sent his text message at the 11th hour.

This sparked outrage from ANC MP Bheki Hadebe.

“We can’t be reduced into SMS as if they are communicating to their boyfriends and girlfriends on the 11th hour,” he said.

Attempts by board member Pulane Molokwane to indicate that she and another board member as well as the company secretary were a few minutes late at the virtual meeting did not convince Scopa.