LIVE: No resignation from Koko yet #EskomInquiry
2018-01-24 12:46Eskom executive Matshela Koko will present evidence before the portfolio committee of public enterprises.
Controversial Eskom executive Matshela Koko has refused to resign from the power utility, saying he believes he still has a crucial role to play at Eskom. And he says that Eskom’s lenders have been unfairly demanding his dismissal.
Koko sent a lawyer’s letter to former interim Eskom boss Sean Maritz on Monday, in which he stated that if Eskom wants to dismiss him, it must follow the letter of the law.
On Monday last week Koko returned to his job at the power utility as Eskom group executive for generation.
"Our client is not willing simply to resign on the basis of unfounded calls that he do so, insofar as Eskom may believe that it has grounds to terminate Koko's services,” Koko’s attorney Asger Gani stated. “These have as yet not been disclosed to him.”
Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba told the SABC in Davos, Switzerland, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting that he welcomed Singh’s resignation on the eve of his appearance in Parliament and implored with Koko to also step down out of his own “conscious” and “do the right thing”.
Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa announced widespread changes to the parastatal on Saturday, including a new board and a directive that all executives implicated in wrongdoing, including Koko and Singh should be removed.
Koko to answer to Parliament
Eskom head of generation Matshela Koko has not followed suit of former Eskom executives Anoj Singh and Prish Govender, who tendered their resignations this week.
“My focus is on parliament now," he told Fin24 via a WhatsAapp message, in response to a question about whether he plans to leave the power utility.
Over the weekend the government appointed a new board, and requested that executives facing allegations of corruption, this includes Koko, be removed.
On Tuesday evening, during his testimony, Singh said he resigned to accede government’s request. He said that he did not discuss the resignation with Govender, who also resigned on Tuesday.
Koko has been implicated in the McKinsey-Trillian contract, among other things. In his submission to the inquiry, which Fin24 has seen, Koko shifts the blame to company secretary and head of legal Suzanne Daniels regarding the matter.
He alleges Daniels was "pivotally" involved in procuring payment of R460m directly to Trillian, when he in his capacity as interim CEO had on more than one occasion declined the requested payment, Fin24 reported.
Daniels in turn told Fin24 that she stands by her testimony to Parliament. Last year he faced a disciplinary hearing for allegedly failing to declare a conflict of interest.
His stepdaughter was a director at a company, Impulse International, which was awarded Eskom contracts worth R1bn over 11 months. He was cleared of any wrongdoing and reinstated at the beginning of the year.
Koko is expected to present evidence, accounting for his
time as acting CEO at the power utility. The inquiry will focus on the purchase
of Optimum Coal Mine by Tegeta, the prepayment to Tegeta and corporate
governance at Eskom.
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