Portia Derby appointed as Transnet CEO

Portia Derby has been appointed as the new CEO of Transnet. 

In a statement released on Friday, the Department of Public Enterprises said the appointment to the position, which has been vacant since May 2019, comes after "an extensive and rigorous search".

"The recruitment process was run by the Board of Transnet, which made a recommendation of the preferred candidate to the Public Enterprises Minister in line with the Memorandum of Incorporation that governs the relationship between the Board and the Shareholder Representative."

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Transnet has come under fire for paying millions towards an insert in the Gupta-owned The New Age newspaper back in 2012, a deal which is the subject of scrutiny at the commission of inquiry into state capture. 

Derby, whose appointment is effective immediately and is described as an independent and dynamic leader, will have to hit the ground running at the cash-strapped entity.

She is a former director-general of the Department of Public Enterprises, which has Transnet as one of the state-owned entities it oversees. 

"She will work with the board, management team, workers, unions and other stakeholders to rebuild an institution that was severely affected by state capture and large-scale corruption," said the department. 

Derby was formerly married to Brian Molefe, who was also once the CEO of both Eskom and Transnet. The two reportedly fell out over Molefe's links to the Gupta family.