Although the Guptas gained much influence over SOEs via their personal relationship with former president Jacob Zuma, it was Essa who played a key role through making direct contact with important players in these entities.
Zuma – with the cooperation of the Guptas – ensured that the right ministers were appointed to look after SOEs (Malusi Gigaba en Lynne Brown), who in turn implemented Gupta-friendly boards and chief executives.
Eskom had been a target of the Guptas for years, but they had struggled to convince the national electricity supplier to buy their coal – that is, until December 2014, when Brown appointed eight new board members.
Essa had a direct business or personal relationship with five of the 13 board members. For example, Mark Pamensky, one of the board members, and Essa had both been directors of Yellow Star Trading 1099. Pamensky had also been on the board of the Guptas' Oakbay Resources and Energy.
But the Guptas' hijacking of Eskom hit a snag: board chairman Zola Tsotsi was seen as a hurdle to overcome. He had to go – and Essa was well placed to assist.