[dropcap]P[/dropcap]ublic enterprises minister Lynne Brown has named four interim members to the board of embattled state-owned electricity company Eskom.
The appointees are Banothile Makhubela, Sathie Gounden, Pulane Molokwane and Simphiwe Dingaan, who still require cabinet approval, Brown told reporters in Johannesburg after Eskom’s annual general meeting.
The new appointments come during a turbulent period for Eskom.
The ANC forced the government to rescind Brian Molefe’s reappointment as CEO after a graft ombudsman’s report and leaked e-mails indicated that he may have abused his position to the benefit of the Gupta family. Some of its members are friends with the president and in business with his son. Chairman Ben Ngubane was also implicated in the e-mails and resigned last week.
Molefe has challenged his dismissal. In answering court papers filed last week, Brown said she had lost confidence in the board. Parliament is investigating alleged irregularities at the utility that provides about 90% of the country’s power, with the inquiry due to start in early August.
Johnny Dladla was appointed acting CEO on Thursday.
New board members
Makhubela has a doctorate in chemistry. She served on the board of state-owned oil company PetroSA from 2015 until this year. The company has reported years of losses while paying bonuses to executives.
Molokwane is a nuclear physicist and in 2015 was appointed as a member of the National Planning Commission, which developed the government’s economic blueprint. President Jacob Zuma wants the country to pursue a nuclear-power expansion plan, which has been criticised by opposition parties for being unnecessary and unaffordable.
Gounden, a chartered accountant, is a past president of the Association for the Advancement of Black Accountants of Southern Africa. He served on the board of the South African Post Office from 2014 to 2015, when the board resigned and the government appointed a new chairman to turn around the loss-making organisation.
Dingaan has worked as a trader at Rand Merchant Bank and paper maker Mondi. — Reported by Loni Prinsloo and Paul Burkhardt, (c) 2017 Bloomberg LP