Molefe ‘not aware’ Zuma wanted to make him minister
‘Brian was set to replace Gordhan’
Former Eskom CEO Brian Molefe has denied any knowledge about former president Jacob Zuma’s plan to appoint him as finance minister when he fired Pravin Gordhan in 2017.
Molefe was yesterday concluding his Eskom-related evidence before the commission of inquiry into state capture.
Commission chair, deputy chief justice Raymond Zondo, pointed out that some of the evidence presented before it pointed to a plan by Zuma and known by the Guptas to have him as Gordhan’s replacement.
Molefe left Eskom in November 2016 after being implicated by former public protector Thuli Madonsela’s damning report into state capture. Molefe is among senior officials who allegedly enabled the Gupta business empire to irregularly secure contracts in state-owned companies, including Eskom.
Yesterday, Molefe was drawn to evidence by then ANC top six officials Gwede Mantashe, Zweli Mkhize and Jessie Duarte, who confirmed that Zuma had expressed an intention to hire Molefe, which they opposed.
Zondo asked Molefe to explain his departure from Eskom and his surprise emergence as an ANC MP in early 2017 only for him to return to the power utility after Zuma appointed Malusi Gigaba as Gordhan’s replacement.
“If the evidence on affidavit by Dr Zweli Mkhize, Ms Jessie Duarte and Mr Mantashe is true, we then know that president Zuma wanted to replace Mr Gordhan with you as minister of finance,” Zondo said.
Zondo also pointed to evidence led before him that
Gupta associates had expressed confidence in Molefe, had known his career moves before they took effect and that they had allegedly imposed their interest in the operations of Transnet and Eskom during his tenure.
Molefe said he was not aware about “this great plan” for his appointments and the allegations about the decisions that were taken outside the companies he led.
“I am not aware that there were decisions taken outside. It may well be so, but I am not aware that decisions were being taken outside of organisations or government.
“Secondly, my frustration with that narrative is that it does not leave me with anything to answer because in all of those things my name is mentioned in the context of other people talking about me,” he said.
He insisted that he had left Eskom in late 2016 to retire as he had been tainted by Madonsela.
“When you are the CEO and you are accused of corruption and all sorts of things, even when they have not been proven, how do you face your employees every day?” he asked.
He insisted that his actions had been what he believed in and were not “directed from outside”.
Molefe is scheduled to return next week to testify on his tenure as Transnet CEO.
Zuma wanted to replace Mr Gordhan with ‘‘ you as finance minister