Brian Molefe: subtle descent to disgrace

14 May 2017 - 02:00 By Peter Bruce
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Making predictions about South African politics is always dangerous, but here's an almost absolute certainty: Brian Molefe's return to Eskom as CEO will not last long and it will not be a happy one.

Briefly, what has happened is this.

President Jacob Zuma's cronies and capturers, the Gupta family, to whom, as we now know, Molefe partly reported during his first stint as CEO, picked him as their choice to replace Pravin Gordhan as finance minister.

Molefe was unhappy at Eskom anyway, having been accused of corruption by former public protector Thuli Madonsela.

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So he was quietly moved to parliament in readiness for Zuma to finally execute his plan to fire Gordhan and move a Gupta hireling into the Treasury. Once there, he could remove a wide range of threats to their "businesses" and, of course, open access to the Public Investment Corporation to the Gangster State.

Things went a bit pear-shaped. Unfortunately for Molefe he had, upon leaving Eskom last year, given the strong impression that he intended to clear his name of Madonsela's accusations.

But as he had not by then (nor by now) cleared anything, the ANC rebelled and forced Zuma to quietly drop the finance minister Molefe plan.

Then a number of things happened at once. Out of the blue, Molefe, who had been at Eskom less than two years, was suddenly offered a R30-million "pension" by the Eskom board. Only under a board run by the ever-accommodating Ben Ngubane would a CEO who resigned after less than two years in the company, let alone the job, be offered a $2-million farewell. Sadly, Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown, who is merely tangential to the Gangster State (she'll do what she's told) said he couldn't have the money.

This was serious for Molefe. He needed that R30-million. His lifestyle isn't extravagant, but it's expensive. Lots of property to keep up.

And then Zuma fired Gordhan, making, for the Guptas, Molefe's position as a backbench ANC MP ridiculous. Their choice to replace him at Eskom as acting CEO — the ducking, diving and occasionally lying Matshela Koko — had become a liability. Rather bring Molefe back, whatever the consequences.

The problem, now, is two-fold for Molefe. First, there will most certainly be consequences, even while Jacob Zuma is there as protection. The president — eventually — drops everyone like Molefe anyway. He is a mere tool. The most recent dropee is Tina Joemat-Pettersson. And the queue to reverse or interdict this "appointment" will be round the block. Second, Molefe has lost control of his life. He is owned, batted back and forth like a ping-pong ball.

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In many ways, Molefe is a tragic figure. Bright, ambitious and (important in the new South Africa) black, he could have had it all. He could have chosen the BEE route and be running one of the Big Four banks by now. He could have stayed in government and be running a United Nations agency by now.

Instead, he chose co-option by money and power, facilitating the enrichment of others while looking away. Co-option is never an event.

It's a process and one day you wake up and you're not who you thought you were.

I remember once telling him an outrageous story about how Zuma personally became involved in the removal of Tshediso Matona, his predecessor at Eskom, by allowing a Gupta associate, Salim Essa, to "interview" candidates to replace Matona. He laughed as he walked away. "I've heard worse," he said.

So he's seen it all and now he is it all. It isn't what he wants. He can be a bully, but he's also brittle and sensitive. His return to Eskom is going to stretch every sinew of his character. It's important to acknowledge that there are many people there, some senior managers included, who'll be genuinely glad to have him back. They credit him with "saving" Eskom from the torment of load shedding.

But this is no longer a rescue story or even a leadership story. It is simply yet more evidence that decisions about the fate of our country are being made "elsewhere" (to borrow a phrase from the ANC in response to the loss of Gordhan) by an immigrant family who have enriched the president's son and, in return, have been granted political power. Zuma has sold our sovereignty. It's that simple and that disgusting.

You have to ask how some members of Zuma's cabinet live with themselves.

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