Africa-Press – South-Africa. The chairperson of the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal, Siboniso Duma, joined the chorus of leaders on Sunday in lambasting former Eskom CEO André de Ruyter, saying he was out of touch with the party’s policy objectives.
Speaking at the ANC KwaZulu-Natal’s lekgotla at the weekend, Duma said De Ruyter’s accusations were part of a growing hostile approach in blaming the party for everything “left, right and centre”.
De Ruyter angered many of the ANC’s leaders in questioning the government’s approach to Eskom and its links to corruption activities at the entity.
The party has given De Ruyter seven days to file a criminal complaint, or it will open a criminal case against him.
Duma came to the ANC’s defence, saying De Ruyter’s “posture” shows the party had to tighten how it deployed people to government and state-owned enterprises.
He asked why De Ruyter was not “vetted” before his appointment at Eskom, especially as he had shown to be against the ANC’s policy direction for state-owned enterprises.
“They are very arrogant and very antagonistic towards the ANC. The ANC is under attack these days from people who made material conditions better, but are using it against the ANC. The ANC must decide; we are at a crossroads. Suppose we want to be the leader of society, in that case, we must be seen ensuring the issue of economic emancipation becomes a reality,” Duma said.
He said:
Last week, ANC leaders Fikile Mbalula and Mondli Gungubele labelled De Ruyter as “right-wing and a failure”.
Duma said De Ruyter had been treated as a “media darling” and was not criticised, but treated as a “hero”.
“The language shows he does not understand what the ANC wants to achieve. Someone who is in charge of billions, and we thought it was good that they were not vetted. If De Ruyter was black, what was going to happen? He would have been lambasted day and night. But the current media and posture are making him seem like a hero. Everyone is taking it as if he is the correct one,” Duma said.
Cosatu, the ANC’s alliance partner, was also critical of De Ruyter’s corruption allegations, saying he should have reported it to law enforcement agencies.
Cosatu’s spokesperson, Sizwe Pamla, told Newzroom Afrika on Sunday that the former CEO’s motives were suspicious because he was raising it as he was leaving Eskom.
The trade union federation, though, unlike the ANC, insisted that De Ruyter’s allegations warranted some action by the government.
For More News And Analysis About South-Africa Follow Africa-Press
