Brian Molefe to return as Eskom CEO

Eskom board spokesperson Khulani Qoma has confirmed that Molefe will indeed reprise his position as the head of the electricity parastatal on Monday.

According to Business Report, Ben Ngubane, Eskom chairperson, said the parties involved in settling on an agreement for Molefe’s early retirement package could not come to an amicable solution. It was then decided he would return. His contract ends in May 2020.

“The board, therefore, rescinded Molefe’s early retirement application,” Ngubane said.

“We are facing serious problems. None of our applications for coal purchases had been approved by the Treasury. We need that skill that saved us last time. When he came here, Eskom was on the brink of collapse. The previous chief executive had spoken about blackouts. There was a stage when they told the minister that Eskom might not be able to pay salaries.

“In terms of our fiduciary responsibility, we had no alternative other than to bring (Molefe) back to help us,” added Ngubane.

Molefe was sworn in as an MP in February after announcing his departure from Eskom in January in the wake of a damning report by the former public protector that he had been favouring the controversial Gupta family with deals.

It had been widely, and controversially, expected that this was because he was due to be the next finance minister.

Earlier

Parliament on Friday confirmed former Eskom CEO Brian Molefe has resigned as an ANC MP, as news broke that he was heading back to the power utility.

“Parliament wishes to confirm the resignation of Mr Brian Molefe as a Member of Parliament effective from Sunday, 14 May. The Speaker of the National Assembly, Ms Baleka Mbete, wishes Mr Molefe well,” the legislature said.

Molefe is due to return to Eskom on Monday. He resigned under a cloud at the end of 2016, a few weeks after former public protector Thuli Madonsela released findings suggesting the Eskom leadership had stretched procurement rules to give a coal contract to the Gupta family’s Tegeta Exploration.

This week, National Treasury released an auditing report to parliament’s watchdog public accounts committee showing Eskom had failed to apply due diligence in awarding coal deals to the company.

Prior to President Jacob Zuma’s Cabinet reshuffle in March, Molefe was widely tipped as the country’s next finance minister, but the post went to Malusi Gigaba.

– Caxton News Service