(4 minutes read)
· Eskom chief operating officer Jan Oberholzer, it is alleged, has negotiated a contract with a construction firm, where he has the business interests-owning shares of the company. That is not over, he alleged to have asked his subordinate
· The judge noted that the said contract breached the laid down Eskom policy
· In April, Eskom’s board said there was no need for the company to take any action against Oberholzer
There seems to be no let up in controversies surrounding Eskom. The other day www.trendsnafrica.com reported about how corporate houses and consulting organizations have got enriched in the earlier regime milking the public power utility. Now, Eskom chief operating officer Jan Oberholzer, it is alleged, has negotiated a contract with a
construction firm, where he has the business interests-owning shares of the company. That is not over, he alleged to have asked his subordinate
It is important to note that a former High Court Judge Nazeer Cassim, who inquired into the charge of not revealing his business interests in the company, has cleared Oberholzer of corruption. However, the judge noted that the said contract breached the laid down Eskom policy. It may be recalled that back in April, Eskom’s board said
there was no need for the company to take any action against Oberholzer.
Eskom is battling to revamp itself after years of mismanagement and corruption. CEO Andre de Ruyter took over early this year pledging to root out graft and improve operations. Oberholzer, a former employee of Stefanutti Stocks, signed a submission to Eskom’s investment and finance committee recommending an increase in a contract with the construction firm. At that time, Oberholzer held shares in Stefanutti Stocks valued at R 600,000, which later declined to R 6000. The judge said that Oberholzer breached the provisions of the Eskom policy and observed that he should have abstained from the transactions in totality, knowing well his interest in the construction company.
In a separate case against him, Oberholzer admitted to calling his subordinate and asking him to find a job in Cape Town for Gregory Jacobs, his brother-in-law. However, there was no pressure exerted on his subordinate to do that job. There was also another charge of the COO using foul language against the subordinate and even threatening
to sack him. Oberholzer apologised for his language, according to documents related to the grievance.
