Montana throws ‘greedy’ ANC politicians under Prasa train

Former Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) CEO Lucky Montana has told the Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture that the railway agency was destroyed by “greedy politicians” from the African National Congress (ANC).

Montana told commission chairperson, Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, on Friday that former Prasa board chairperson Popo Molefe was appointed because he (Montana) and former Deputy Finance Minister Sfiso Buthelezi refused to “accept an unlawful instruction to cancel the awarding of a contract” for the railway agency’s new trains.

“I [will] always say this… my affidavit is very clear. Prasa was destroyed by greedy ANC politicians who didn’t like an awarding [of a contract] to a [different] company. They were even telling us why do you appoint a French. I then said to them change the laws and tell us that we shouldn’t appoint imperialists or multi-national companies,” he said.

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On him leaving Prasa, Montana said I knew it was coming when he was told in March 2014 that a new board would be brought in, after he had refused to accept the awarding of a contract.

He said it was hinted that Molefe would be appointed as chairperson.

“Chair, let me say… I knew I was going to lose my job. I knew because I had defied very powerful politicians in the ANC, but I won’t mention them today. They wanted to appoint their own people, but I said it’s not gonna [sic] happen,” he said.

The former Prasa boss added that even after everything that he had went through, he was still a loyal member of the ANC.

Montana left Prasa in July 2015 after handing in his resignation amid allegations of him abusing his power.

Under Montana, Auswell Mashaba’s Swifambo Rail won a R3.5 billion tender in 2013 to supply locomotives but the rail agency ended up with trains that did not fit SA’s rail specifications

He told the commission that he was the person that stopped former president Jacob Zuma’s son Duduzane and the Gupta family from manipulating Prasa’s rolling stock programme because they wanted to do “illegal things”.

“Those who were fighting president Zuma… they were extremely happy when I went to Parliament to testify before the parliamentary inquiry on Eskom and I dealt with the Guptas there.

“They were so happy because this was gonna be used against Zuma. Now they are unhappy chair… because I said it is not only the Guptas. The Guptas tried to manipulate our rolling stock programme. Chair, I refused… I fought with them,” he said.

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Montana alleged that the Guptas had hoped that them knowing Zuma would work in their favour.

“I said you cannot extort money in our names. I said you cannot tell people outside the country that you are working for us [Prasa] and you are working for president Zuma.

“Tony Gupta and Duduzane Zuma were there. I told them that this is our president and we have got a duty to protect him. And I said if you guys go out of the country and you want money from these companies and you claim to work for the president, I am going to fight against that and I will convey that to the president, and I did that,” he said.

He told Zondo that was the reason why he became the enemy.

“I wanted to step down because I knew Popo Molefe came to the board precisely because the then minister of transport was unhappy with the fact that we refused to follow an instruction,” he added.

Watch the proceedings below, courtesy of the SABC.

Additional reporting Neo Thale