Can we trust De Ruyter’s claims of ANC involvement in Eskom corruption?

There is so much spin happening around Eskom and André de Ruyter at the moment that, if it was used to power electricity generators, the load shedding plaguing this country would soon be a thing of the past.

De Ruyter, who resigned as Eskom CEO this year after claiming that two senior ANC ministers were involved in the looting of the corporation, this week refused to reveal those names to parliament.

Eskom ‘risk assessment’

And then it emerged – via investigative journalist Jacques Pauw – that Business Leadership SA had spent millions on a request by De Ruyter for a “risk assessment” on Eskom.

This was allegedly based on nothing more than hearsay and “speculation”.

The investigation, by an organisation run by former police chief George Fivaz was, according to Pauw, led by an apartheid-era intelligence operative.

‘Stratkom’ to discredit former CEO

Fivaz then, in turn, accused Pauw of running a “stratkom”, or strategic communication, disinformation operation to discredit De Ruyter.

The timing of Pauw’s disclosures – as De Ruyter went before parliament – was either fortuitous or deliberately timed.

Pauw claimed the report given to De Ruyter alleged Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe and former deputy president David Mabuza were behind attempts to poison him.

This was based on “speculation”.

Eskom sabotage

He claimed there was, likewise, no evidence for a claim that Russian agents were behind the sabotage at Eskom.

Pauw was at pains to emphasise his story on the De Ruyter-initiated risk assessment did not mean there was no corruption at Eskom, nor that ANC figures were not involved.

However, the waters have now been well and truly muddied and De Ruyter’s credibility questioned.

What is needed is a truly independent investigation into what De Ruyter has said.

Otherwise, all we have left is a mess of disinformation.