Montana claims Popo Molefe led project to discredit him
Former Prasa CEO Lucky Montana claims the entity’s former board chairman Popo Molefe led a campaign to tarnish his name because he refused to follow what he considered to have been unlawful instructions
Montana was back at the commission of inquiry into state capture on Tuesday.
He resigned from the rail agency in 2015 after reports that his relationship with the board had broken down and allegations of irregular contractssigned under his leadership.
"I defend Prasa vehemently because people have come to the commission to say money was paid and was paid in advance, but they don't see any value. Chair, I want to assure you that there is no single Prasa project where we spent money and we cannot show what we did," he told the commission.
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"With Swifambo, for example, the country can say here are the locomotives we are using them. Others are saying there are too tall, but they are not saying the locomotives are not there, they are running on tracks. The commuter trains where we spent R50 billion, we can show them," said Montana.
He told the commission Molefe and other executives took advantage of his leave in 2014 to paint him as corrupt.
"I used to work with Mr Tiro Holele chairperson. He penned an article to defend me against corruption, but when I later disciplined him, he changed and I became the monster he has described to the commission."
He said another former Prasa executive, Martha Ngoye, became bitter when agreed to replace her as the CEO of Prasa's subsidiary Intersite.
"Chair, I fought with many people, ministers and son. And if I believe something is wrong, I say it is wrong. I have never been afraid chair because I have never made an unlawful decision.
“But there is an attempt to take whatever may have been a mistake of a shortcoming on irregularity becomes criminality so that those of us who don't follow a certain narrative are chased.”
