Transnet ghosts return

In what may seem like the ghosts of Christmas past coming to haunt us, Mafika Mkhwanazi, the former chief executive of Transnet, has returned to the parastatal as its chairman.

Others who have been out of the limelight for years, including Don Mkhwanazi and Israel Skosana, have also popped up on the new Transnet board.

While the board said it would announce the name of the new CEO in March, speculation is mounting that someone has already been chosen. Names mentioned include former Public Investment Corporation head Brian Molefe, former Transnet executive Siyabonga Gama and Passenger Rail Services Association CEO Lucky Montana.

This week Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba announced the new board of the state-owned transport and logistics group and drew criticism from the SA Transport and Allied Workers' Union (Satawu).

The union said the new board lacked the necessary transport and logistics knowledge. It also expressed disappointment with the board's mix, saying it was skewed towards big business and the private sector.

But the president of the Black Management Forum, Jimmy Manyi, welcomed the board and said the forum was "pleased with the diversity".

Tembakazi Mnyaka, the forum's deputy president, is one of the new members.

Mkhwanazi, who also sits on a committee advising President Jacob Zuma on the future of state-owned entities, led Transnet for less than three years before he was replaced by Maria Ramos and it is widely agreed that he did not leave the organisation in good shape.

Since Ramos left to join Absa, Transnet has been without a CEO for more than 22 months.

Gigaba has given the new board - which includes former chair of the Friends of Jacob Zuma Trust Don Mkhwanazi - three months to find a new chief executive for the parastatal. Yet many believe the successful candidate has already been chosen.

"The incoming board has its work cut out - we will give it some stringent time lines for it to finalise the recruitment process for the group CEO, and to make the necessary recommendations to the ministry," said Gigaba.

He said the cabinet "ideally would prefer that in the first month of 2011 we should be able to make the announcement, but I'm quite aware that it may become an onerous exercise".

The minister said he was being "liberal" with the deadline, adding that filling other key vacancies within Transnet was also an immediate priority for the board.

The minister retained Peter Moyo, a director of the Amabubesi Group; Nunu Ntshingila, CEO at Ogilvy SA, and Nolwazi Gcaba, director of Transnet's Second Defined Benefit Fund, from the previous board.

Commenting on reports that Brian Molefe had already been identified as the new CEO, the minister said he had not given members of the new board a short list of possible of candidates, but rather expected the board to provide him with a short list as this was their responsibility.

Molefe's PIC job was filled this week by Elias Masilela, vice-chairman of Business Unity SA's standing committee and a convenor of the public finance and monetary policy chamber at Nedlac. Masilela had been in an executive position at Sanlam.

According to reports, Molefe, a close ally of former President Thabo Mbeki, stayed on at the PIC to assist with a deal involving an investment in a project that also involves Zuma's son Duduzane and the Guptas.

Early this year the Mail & Guardian reported that Toronto-listed Uranium One, a mining and exploration company, sold its South African subsidiary, whose main asset is Dominion mine in Klerksdorp, for about R280-million to a company led by the Guptas and in which Duduzane Zuma has shares.

Rumour has it that the Transnet post might be Molefe's reward for this deal.

The Guptas are close business associates of Sandile Zungu, a member of the president's broad-based black economic empowerment advisory council.

Last year Zungu apparently received between R60-million an R70-million in an out-of-court settlement with Transnet over the controversial sale of its 5% stake in cellphone company MTN.

In 2004, when Mafika Mkhwanazi was still the CEO, Transnet proposed selling the shares to an empowerment company and Zungu's consortium was the preferred bidder. But when Ramos took the reins at Transnet it reviewed the purchase price, cancelled the deal and subsequently sold the MTN shares at more than double the price.

Zungu launched a legal battle, which was settled in the period when Chris Wells was Transnet's acting CEO.

The other board members are:

• Nazmeera Moola, head of macro strategy at Macquarie First South;
• Peter Malungani, founding member of the Tsogo Sun group of hotels;
• Israel Skosana, executive director and chairman of Kapela Investment;
• Doris Tshepe, managing director and practising attorney at Cheadle Thompson & Haysom;
• Juergen Schrempp, CEO of Katlheho Capital GmbH;
• Ellen Tshabalala, member of the presidential advisory council on BEE;
• Harry Gazendam, senior executive at Toyota SA; and
• Michele Fannuchi, logistics consultant.