By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Former Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba is expected to appear in court on charges related to corruption that occurred during his tenure, the statement from his office said.
Gigaba will be charged in connection with procurement irregularities at the state-owned rail operator, Transnet, the statement said.
“I respect the processes of our constitutional democracy and will continue to cooperate fully with the legal system as it performs its duties,” he said. “My conscience is clear regarding my conduct in office.”
The Transnet corruption probe centres around irregular contracts and payments worth billions of rand that were unlawfully awarded.
The latest development marks another step in the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) broader state capture clean-up, which has seen multiple arrests and court appearances involving former executives and board members from state-owned entities such as Transnet and Eskom.
Following his engagement with the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC), Gigaba clarified that the matter is not procurement-related, contrary to earlier reports. A legal process has now embarked on a review of the entire matter, inclusive of other respondents’ charges, to allow him the opportunity to respond comprehensively and in full context.
Although it is not clear at this stage what the preferred charges against him are, Gigaba said the matter related to irregular contracts, stemming from his tenure as public enterprises minister.
Gigaba was appointed public enterprises minister after a fallout between then President Jacob Zuma and then minister Barbara Hogan after she refused to rehire Siyabonga Gama at Transnet after his initial dismissal. Gigaba remained minister until May 2014, during which time the 1064 locomotives deal went through.
Gigaba is one of the key figures implicated in the State Capture saga. In Part 2 of the State Capture Report, a staggering 506 pages are devoted to Transnet — detailing how the parastatal was ensnared in what the commission described as “a systematic scheme of securing illicit and corrupt influence or control over decision-making”.
Gigaba, finance chief Anoj Singh, Gama, and CEO Brian Molefe were all flagged in the report — with Molefe, Singh, and Gama singled out as “the primary architects and implementers of State Capture at Transnet”.
They face a string of charges including fraud, corruption and breaches of both the Public Finance Management Act and the Companies Act.
Gigaba served in the cabinet from 2010 until 2018, including as finance minister for a year after Zuma fired the late Pravin Gordhan.
He returned to parliament last year when he was elected as a Member of Parliament for the African National Congress (ANC), subsequently appointed chair of the Defence portfolio committee.
This story has been update with the latest statement from Gigaba.