Former public enterprises minister Lynne Brown appears before the public enterprises portfolio committee in parliament. Picture: ANA
Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown yesterday asked her personal assistant to resign in view of being linked to the Gupta family, which is embroiled in state capture accusations.
New revelations in the Gupta e-mails this week revealed Brown’s PA, Kim Davids, was instrumental in making key decisions, which included the selection of new board appointments to state-owned enterprises.
Every week more names are implicated in the e-mails, yet no action is taken against anyone.
Atul Gupta yesterday even had the audacity to claim the mails are fake in his first public response other than through his lawyer since the Gupta e-mails surfaced.
Really?
Brown said in a statement: “This past week I have been confronted by allegations against Ms Davids. In the interest of fairness I asked Ms Davids to respond to these allegations. I was satisfied with her responses, but I felt that the continuous allegations against Ms Davids could compromise the legitimacy of my office.
“My decision is not an expression of guilt on the part of Ms Davids. However, it is important that my office is above reproach.”
Brown’s move might be a small one, but hopefully it will be the first of many to come.
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