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The race card: Investigation ‘rubbishes’ racism claims against Eskom CEO André de Ruyter

The race card: Investigation ‘rubbishes’ racism claims against Eskom CEO André de Ruyter
Andre de Ruyter, thennchief executive officer of Nampak Ltd. Photographer: Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Based on the findings of Advocate Ishmael Semenya SC, Eskom’s board has cleared group chief executive (GCE) André de Ruyter of allegations of racism and misgovernance. That gives De Ruyter the space to continue cleaning up the mess that has become Eskom.

In a statement issued late Wednesday afternoon, the Eskom board was emphatic in its support of the GCE, who was brought in to steer the Titanic that is the power utility before it crashes and drags the South African economy down with it.

“Racism allegations about Eskom CEO rubbished by senior counsel finding. The use of the race card without foundation, merit or substance has no place at Eskom!” reads the statement’s fairly unsubtle headline. 

Advocate Ishmael Semenya was appointed by the board to investigate allegations made against De Ruyter by Eskom’s former chief procurement officer Solly Tshitangano, who was recently dismissed in a separate disciplinary hearing regarding poor performance. 

The board quoted the advocate’s findings as follows:  

“Having had all the evidence, and considered all the documents, I could find no substantiation for the allegation that the GCE has conducted himself in any manner that would amount to racist practice. 

“I could also find no substantiation of poor governance on the part of the GCE or Eskom. There was no substantiation for the allegation that the recruitment processes were irregular.

“The claim that the procurement processes were unlawful is also without merit. I, accordingly, cannot find in Eskom, anyone guilty of any wrongdoing and would be making no recommendation to that effect.” 

The statement went on to say that “the Eskom board today considered Adv Semenya’s report and had no hesitation in accepting it in its entirety”.

So ends the latest sordid chapter in the SOE’s equally sordid history. 

Eskom’s board also noted “with serious concern, the emerging pattern that when Eskom employees are charged with poor performance and/or ill-discipline, there is a tendency for them to go public with wild and baseless claims”. 

The message there is pretty clear: stop what the board regards as nonsense. 

The clearing of racism allegations against De Ruyter comes against the backdrop of a deadlock in wage talks between Eskom and unions, which will now be mediated by the CCMA. Read here.

Eskom also managed to recently repay about a fifth of its debt, to R401-billion at the end of March, from R484-billion a year earlier. Read here.

On other fronts, the company is forging ahead with plans to split into three units – generation, transmission and distribution. This is also rubbing against the grain of labour opposition. 

Meanwhile, load shedding continues apace as the first frosts of winter hit the Highveld, stifling economic growth, investment and job creation in the process. De Ruyter has cleared one big hurdle, but Eskom and the wider economy have many more in their path. DM/BM 

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  • Ion Williams says:

    Mr de Ruyter has a difficult job he has to not only repair a broken ship. The sailors are incompetent. There is very little money. The owners (government) are incompetent, not accountable, and benefit when their cadres sabotage the process and then benefit through tenders. The funders (taxpayers) are getting fed up with the owners. The cadres want him out at all costs, and will if possible find that his dogs previous owners brother was racist and that now somehow implicates him, and will devise a argument to make it stick. They don’t realize that that makes them not only incompetent but also racist. He cannot call them what they are, incompetent, as this apparently makes him racist… I really hope that the architecture of the social system changes to expose all these idiots and their incompetence for their followers to see (the rest of the world already does). But unfortunately they will not have the competence or intellect to comprehend and understand the situation.

    • Charles Parr says:

      The cadres will continue having a go at the CEO and COO because they are the only hope that Eskom has of stopping this rape of an SOE.

    • Gerrie Pretorius Pretorius says:

      Very well said Ion and all too true for the understanding of the anc and their “anc above country” philosophy.

  • Rob Glenister says:

    Mr De Ruyter, please sue Tshitangano for defamation of character and demand a significant amount so that this little trouble maker with a history of poor performance is severely dealt with and a lesson taught to others of his ilk. People like them need to be stopped in their tracks if we are to get anywhere in this country.

    • Jane Crankshaw says:

      Agree 100%….the time has come to fight back, including fighting for the end to BEE policies that are racist in themselves and emboldens incompetents like Mr Tshitanguano!

  • Keith Scott says:

    At last, a ‘snotklap’ for those who try to use the race card to defend their nefarious actions.

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