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Former Eskom board member Norman Baloyi told the state capture commission on Wednesday that his removal was linked to his questioning certain transactions.
“I questioned certain transactions. It was the IT tender that I expected to conclude in a certain period because my expertise is primarily IT. It started at R2bn, then moved to R4bn after expiration, “said Baloyi.
Baloyi was appointed to the Eskom board by then-Minister for Public Companies Lynne Brown in November 2014.
Baloyi said he asked questions about the TI tender that was extended.
“By chance I called the new president [of the tender committee] to ask if that particular transaction had been concluded. I also asked Mr. [Matshela] Koko because TI was informing him, I suppose, about these problems of the extension of the tender that continued.
Baloyi said that he did not receive positive comments regarding the tender, and Koko told him that TI’s tender had concluded.
“I said I thought I’d make it to the board [for approval]. He said no, it is within the mandate of the committee to approve it, ”said Baloyi.
Baloyi said he warned the board against being blamed for approving things that needed to be approved by the executive.
According to Baloyi, Koko later wrote a letter to the chairman of the board and Brown, accusing Baloyi of working against the board. This, he said, led him to be marginalized and to make decisions without his participation.
He was eventually removed from the board.
Baloyi also revealed to the commission that the suspension of several Eskom executives was done as an emergency and without following due process.
“There was no formal process. There were mixed feelings about who should act. We didn’t have the resumes of the candidates who should be acting, ”he said.
The executive suspension letters, Baloyi said, were drawn up by former Eskom consultant Nicholas Linell. “Most of the content [of the letters] it was the same, ”said Baloyi.
He said the board had agreed that there would be no allegations of misconduct or wrongdoing against the executives.
Baloyi said he had opposed the suspension of the executives.
“I raised the issue of firing the executives. I continued to oppose his suspension. The emergency [to suspend the executives] it was created out of nothing. There was no time to reflect on whether we had done the right thing. The board agreed that the suspensions were unnecessary. “
Baloyi said he believed it was Koko’s idea and plan to suspend the executives.
The commission will hear evidence from former Eskom board member Venete Klein on Thursday.
TimesLIVE
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