Eskom chairperson Mpho Makwana has weighed in on the debate that has ensued following the publication of Andre de Ruyter’s book, saying the former Group CEO broke “trust” that had been put in him.
De Ruyter shocked South Africa over the weekend by publishing a 237-page “tell-all” book titled “Truth to Power: My Three Years Inside Eskom” detailing an array of allegations of systematic and industrial-scale corruption at Eskom.
During Eskom’s State of the System briefing this morning, Makwana said the Eskom board had taken note of what de Ruyter said in his book, adding that the power utility will be taking action against him.
“It must be noted and placed on record that trust was broken by him making those public statements and the publication of the book, and this trust was broken in the most repulsive manner possible,” Makwana said.
“In the course of publication of this book, transgressions were carried out by an executive who was in a fiduciary position, in possession of proprietary information of a National Key Point, who himself evaded being vetted by processes that involved our national security services agency, and most importantly, breaches occurred in terms of Protection of Personal Information Act, various aspects of an executive directors duties as defined in the Companies Act, the PFMA and his own contract clauses of confidentiality.
“Our corporate governance teams are reviewing all this and will take appropriate and reasonable steps to ensure that the board takes all necessary action.
“We will also, through the audit and risk committee of the board, be embarking on an independent investigation to get to the top and veracity of the allegations made.
Makwana said Eskom was also continuously looking at mechanisms, and processes and practises to improve the quality of its internal controls to root out negative and parasitical effects of unethical behaviour and corruption.
Last year, De Ruyter allegedly commissioned the George Fivaz Forensic and Risk (GFFR), a firm owned by former police commissioner George Fivaz, to conduct an investigation dubbed ‘Project Ostrich’, which cost Eskom R50 million without the board approval last year.
It is this controversial report on which de Ruyter based his allegations during a TV interview in February that criminal syndicates were syphoning at least R1 billion a month from Eskom with the help of senior ANC Cabinet members and some politicians.
Makwana’s comments about de Ruyter come hot on the heels of Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan, who, yesterday in Parliament, also lambasted de Ruyter for operating on “his free will” while at Eskom.
Gordhan said that de Ruyter violated his Eskom employment contract and had gone rogue by publishing in a book the minute details of what was happening at Eskom.
“There’s a Clause 15 in his contract that he signed when he was employed as CEO, which requires confidentiality in terms of the affairs of the institution that he served,” Gordhan said.
“In no big institution like Eskom and the private sector would you have a CEO who has left for whatever reason going and writing chapter and verse about events that have been taking place within the company itself.
“But he seemed to have remembered, for some reason, in particular the 1980s and taken the country back to “swart-gevaar” tactics by labelling all of us as communists, as people who are mindless, as people for whom a hammer and sickle must be drawn in our parking bays, which is the worst insult which anyone can cast on South Africans.”
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