Special Investigating Unit head Advocate Andy Mothibi says the fact that former Eskom CEO André de Ruyter did not receive board authorisation to commission a private intelligence investigation into criminality and sabotage at the State-owned utility raises potentially grave governance issues. Nevertheless, he stresses that the report’s content “cannot be ignored” and is proving useful in guiding several ongoing investigations. In a presentation to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa), Mothibi confirmed that George Fivaz Forensics and Risk (GFFR) had been appointed by Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) to conduct the probe in a contract facilitated by De Ruyter, who “was acting on his own”.
