Expect Singh, Koko to take stand when Eskom inquiry continues - DA

Cape Town - The inquiry into the extent of state capture at Eskom is set to resume on January 23, according to a statement issued by the DA on Tuesday afternoon.

Members of the Eskom inquiry committee were informed that it will resume on that date, a DA spokesperson told Fin24 on Tuesday afternoon.

The committee is investigating findings regarding Eskom contained in former public protector Thuli Madonsela’s State of Capture report released in 2016 as well as allegations contained in the #GuptaLeaks documents.

DA MP Natasha Mazzone said in a statement on Tuesday that the party welcomes the announcement that the Parliamentary Inquiry into Eskom is set to resume on January 23.

She pointed out that former Eskom chief financial officer Anoj Singh is set to appear before the inquiry on that day.

Controversial former acting Eskom CEO Mathsela Koko is expected to appear on January 24. Fin24 reported early in January that Koko was reinstated as Eskom's head of generation after a period of suspension.

• READ: Matshela Koko back at Eskom, but not as acting CEO

He faced a disciplinary hearing over allegedly not declaring a conflict of interest while his stepdaughter Koketso Choma was a director at Impulse International, a firm which benefited from about R1bn worth of contracts awarded by Eskom over 11 months. Koko was found not guilty at the disciplinary hearing.

"Eskom is in a crisis and is currently facing major institutional disintegration, financial trouble and gross mismanagement and the situation seems to worsen on a daily basis," said Mazzone.

"It is clear that there is still a lot of work that needs to be done to turn things around, not just at the power utility..."

• READ: As it happened - Brown grilled by MP's about Guptas, state capture
  

At the end of October last year the National Assembly set in place “certain processes” to ensure the safety of the Eskom inquiry committee members after they received threats.

In a statement, parliamentary spokesperson Moloto Mothapo said at the time that Zukiswa Rantho, Natasha Mazzone and the committee’s evidence leader Advocate Ntuthuzelo Vanara are among the committee members who have received threats.

A week before that, former Eskom chair Zola Tsotsi testified that one of the Guptas threaten him with "Baba" (President Jacob Zuma) when he (Tsotsi) said he was unable to give in to his (the Gupta's) demands.

In November Minister of Public Enterprises Lynne Brown was also grilled by the committee about an alleged meeting with Tony Gupta at her home (which she denied), state capture and the suspension of four Eskom officials in 2015.

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