Eskom appoints advocate to oversee De Ruyter racism probe

The Eskom board has announced the appointment of advocate Ishmael Semenya to lead the investigation into allegations of racism against CEO Andre de Ruyter.

This is after Eskom last month resolved to appoint an independent inquiry after suspended chief procurement officer Solly Tshitangano accused De Ruyter of favouring white-owned companies over black-owned companies.

Tshitangano also accused De Ruyter of purging black managers.

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“The board has requested advocate Ishmael Semenya SC, which request he has accepted, to conduct the independent inquiry and, upon completion, to issue written findings and recommendations as soon as reasonably possible.

“Advocate Semenya has also been requested to make recommendations to be pursued by the board against any specific individuals if any wrongdoing is found,” the power utility said in a statement on Friday.

Eskom further said Semenya was allowed to request and consult with any witnesses for the purpose of the inquiry.

READ MORE: Eskom CEO De Ruyter may face Parly inquiry into procurement processes

Semenya will also receive Eskom documents for the investigation, Eskom added.

“The board requests that Semenya be given space to conduct the investigation unhindered to enable him to complete the inquiry and issue his report at his earliest possible convenience.”

Eskom added that it was “committed to a transparent process and to provide updates at critical stages of the inquiry”.

Tshitangano suspension

The power utility suspended Tshitangano and will be instituting disciplinary action against him following allegations of poor performance over the last year.

The EFF described the move as nothing less of a racist act by De Ruyter.

The party defended Tshitangano, claiming that his powers had been taken away after he wrote a letter to Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan in which he described “how destructive and racist De Ruyter has been at Eskom”.

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