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Brown was also questioned about her role in Matona’s suspension, along with three other executives, which led to a downgrade in the investment rating of a distressed Eskom.
The suspensions, according to former Eskom board chair Zola Tsotsi, who has appeared countless times on the committee, were the brainchild of then-SAA board chair Dudu Myeni, backed by Zuma.
The idea of suspending the executives had been brought up by Myeni, in Zuma’s presence, at a meeting in Durban on March 8, 2015, where the decision was made to launch an investigation into Eskom.
The formalization of that decision came three days later, at a meeting Brown attended at Megawatt Park, where he is said to have argued forcefully that the four executives should be asked to stand aside for the duration of the investigation.
Brown told the commission that she “didn’t necessarily” want the executives to leave.
Brown said: “I took care of the only areas that were problematic at Eskom.
“I was concerned about Eskom’s cash flow, I was concerned about excessive costs and underperformance at Medupi and Kusile power plants, I was concerned about loss of charge that had everything to do with maintenance.
“I just didn’t want executives to get involved [in the inquiry]I wanted a fresh eye and a quick deep dive into trouble. It didn’t matter if they were there or not. Did you want them to step aside, not necessarily. “
Brown has finalized his Eskom-related testimony at the commission and is due to return on Denel’s affairs at a date yet to be determined.
TimesLIVE
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