No evidence cabinet members involved in Eskom corruption, says Ramaphosa

Ramaphosa was answering questions in the National Assembly on Thursday afternoon where MPs asked him about allegations made by former Eskom CEO André de Ruyter.

Earlier this year, De Ruyter made shocking allegations against a high-level politician in a TV interview with broadcaster eNCA.

He alleged that the governing ANC is benefitting from the corruption at Eskom through a senior politician, however, he refused to name the alleged suspect.

He resigned from the embattled power utility in December 2022, just days after reports of an alleged poisoning attempt emerged.

The current Eskom board chair Mpho Makwana recently told Parliament that the claims were not new and had been recorded in a report by the State Capture task team which had been established based on the findings of the commission of inquiry into state capture.

Ramaphosa told MPs that it is impossible for him to act on rumours and innuendo.

 "There are institutions whose job it is to investigate these matters as they have the legal mandate, personnel and capacity to do so. Significant progress has been by law enforcement agencies, Eskom and the relevant government departments in addressing crime and corruption at the entity.

“Various measures have been taken by the Department of Public Enterprises and reported to Parliament regarding the implementation of the recommendations of the State Capture Commission," said Ramaphosa.

He added that at least 25 former senior executives at Eskom have been included in a database of individuals dismissed for their involvement in state capture and corruption at Eskom.

"All this demonstrates that the government is proactively investigating and taking action against crime and corruption at Eskom. The law enforcement agencies will, in addition, continue to investigate any credible information that is provided to them.”

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