Brian Dames steps down from Eskom task team after EFF outcry

In the wake of concerns about conflict of interest, Brian Dames, the CEO of Patrice Motsepe’s African Rainbow Energy and Power, has stepped down from Eskom’s new sustainability task team.

A media statement from the presidency said President Cyril Ramaphosa had acceded to Dames’ request to be let go.

The appointment of Dames particularly raised the ire of the Economic Freedom Fighters.

“Dames is not competent, nor has he any capacity to make any recommendation that will stabilise Eskom,” party spokesperson Mbyuseni Ndlozi said over the weekend. “He couldn’t do it before, and he left Eskom in a far worse position than he found it as its chief executive.”

“Based on these concerns, Mr Dames has requested to be released from the task team,” the presidency said in its statement on Wednesday. “President Ramaphosa has expressed his appreciation for Mr Dames’ willingness to serve and respects the judgment he has exercised.”

Dames, Professor Anton Eberhard, Tsakani Mthombeni, Sy Gourrah, Grové Steyn, Frans Baleni, Mick Davis and Busisiwe Vilakazi were tasked by Ramaphosa to “assess the operational, structural and financial viability of Eskom, review the turnaround strategy and present a view on current energy trends”.

The team has until the end of January 2019 to submit its initial recommendations on how to resolve the power utility’s challenges.

The red berets, however, saw the appointment of the team as a plot by Ramaphosa.

The EFF said: “The appointment of this team is equal to setting up a parallel board; which will effectively render the board and management useless and redundant.”

The appointments, for the EFF, were a sign of a bigger “more sinister and more corrupt project to concentrate the power to produce electricity in the hands of few private hands”.

Energy expert Chris Yelland said this week that Dames had been the victim of political interference and had an in-depth knowledge of Eskom.

“Personally, I think the EFF is running scared because there are people with great integrity on this team,” Yelland added.

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