Ramaphosa, Zuma ‘knew of Molefe’s transfer’
THE Commission of Inquiry into State Capture yesterday heard that President Cyril Ramaphosa and his predecessor, Jacob Zuma, knew about the transfer of Brian Molefe from Transnet to Eskom in 2015.
Former Eskom chairperson Dr Ben Ngubane, who was the power utility’s acting chairperson at the time of Molefe’s secondment, told the Commission's chairperson, Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, that Molefe’s appointment was discussed with Zuma and Ramaphosa, who was the country’s deputy president at the time.
Ngubane said Molefe was appointed because there was a leadership vacuum at Eskom following the board’s appointment in December 2014.
According to Ngubane, then public enterprises minister Lynne Brown announced that she had decided to second Molefe to Eskom a few months after she appointed the board.
He said it was Brown who suggested the Eskom board should consider Molefe and that the board must write to Transnet to consider releasing Molefe.
Brown has since told the Commission that the Eskom and Transnet boards negotiated discreetly to facilitate Molefe's secondment and that of former chief financial officer Anoj Singh.
“We approached the minister to present our problem in terms of the leadership of the organisation,” Ngubane testified, adding that Molefe had done a good job at Transnet and the Public Investment Corporation, where he was also chief executive.
Ngubane also defended Eskom's business dealings with then Gupta-owned Optimum Coal Mine, which the fugitive and controversial family bought from mining giant Glencore.
He said Glencore benefited with billions at the expense of Eskom when the price of coal rocketed and increased the price of coal from R150 to R513 overnight.
Ngubane said Glencore could have used its reserves to save Optimum Coal Mine, which has been placed under business rescue.
“They are crooks, they think we are stupid Africans who are there for the taking,” he added.
Justice Zondo jumped in and asked: “How did you sign an agreement that tied you to the same price? How did you allow whoever signed on your behalf? How did you sign such a contract?” To which Ngubane replied saying Eskom's price was an old one and that it refused to renegotiate price.