By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Former Eskom CEO Brian Molefe has defended his close links with the Gupta brothers.
Molefe, testifying at the state capture commission on Friday, said he met the Guptas for the first time around 2007 or 2008.
He admitted having visited their residence in Saxonwold “several times over the years” but said there was nothing wrong with that.
According to Molefe, the Guptas were the only ones who had bought into his vision to establish a state bank, which was rejected by influential black politicians and business people.
Because of their support for this vision, he had grown to like the Indian family.
Among people who had turned down his vision for a state bank, Molefe claimed, was Tito Mboweni when he was Reserve Bank governor.
Therefore, Molefe had no regrets having become close to the controversial family at the centre of the alleged state capture that took place during the Jacob Zuma administration.
“I saw nothing wrong in going to their [the Guptas’] house. I had no reason to treat them like lepers as people pretend that they did when they met them for the first time,” said Molefe.
“It was a normal relationship with people that I had approached and who had received me warmly and said ‘let us talk about establishing this institution [state bank]’.
“They were foreigners in SA but they were prepared to buy into the vision of a bank that would belong to Africans. A lot of our own SA business people did not buy into that vision, they thought it will not work.”
Molefe said there was nothing sinister or untoward regarding his relationship with the Guptas.
If there was anything of that sort, he said, he would have never rejected their proposals for funding they made to the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) when he was CEO.
Molefe also defended his controversial move from Transnet to Eskom in 2015. He was appointed Eskom CEO in April 2015 by then-minister of public enterprises Lynne Brown.
He also took aim at President Cyril Ramaphosa, blaming him for having been part of the problems the state-owned power utility faces today.
According to Molefe, when Ramaphosa was appointed chairperson of government’s Eskom war room while he was a shareholder at Glencore, which is an Eskom contractor, that was a conflict of interest.
Molefe claimed Ramaphosa was effectively the “de facto chairperson” of Eskom when he was leading the war room.
He said this was because the Eskom board was not getting the management reports Eskom management presented to the war room every Friday. Effectively, Eskom management was reporting to the war room instead of the Eskom board.
However Ramaphosa made the claim during an interview that he will step down should he be charged with corruption.
Meanwhile the state capture inquiry on Friday adjourned earlier than planned after a staff member working closely with chairperson deputy chief justice Raymond Zondo tested positive for Covid-19.
This was announced by Zondo after the inquiry returned from the lunch hour following explosive testimony by former Eskom CEO Brian Molefe.
Zondo said he will go into self-isolation and would consider the possibility of virtual sessions while he is in isolation.
Molefe’s lawyer, advocate Thabani Masuku, advised that waiting for “the fog to clear” was their preferred solution as they would choose a physical appearance rather than a virtual one.
“We will adjourn. If we end up being able to use sometime next week, good, but if we cannot it is fine, “said Zondo.
“I am sorry we cannot continue but it is one of those things we have no control over.”
The inquiry, which Zondo has lamented has limited time at its disposal, will see more than a week going to waste.
Such was going to be the case anyway next week after Zuma, who was scheduled to testify, told the commission that He is not going to avail himself.
Zondo confirmed Zuma would not be appearing after his legal team wrote a letter to the inquiry.
“The inquiry has been informed by the attorneys representing the former president that he will not be appearing before the commission next week.
“He says that should not be seen as disrespect on his part. He says it is because he believes the review application he has lodged should be finalised first, and there is the matter at the Constitutional Court which has not been finalised. So he is not going to be here next week.”
Zondo said the inquiry will resume on January 25, a week in which it will be tackling intelligence-related testimony.