Brian Molefe accuses Ramaphosa of politically protecting mining giants
- Former Eskom boss Brian Molefe came out swinging at President Cyril Ramaphosa during his state capture testimony
- He accused Ramphosa of politically protecting Glencore and helping the company benefit from exorbitant coal contracts
- Molefe also admitted that he and Ajay Gupta are close friends and defended them saying they were normal law-abiding citizens
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Brian Molefe, the former Eskom boss, didn't hold back on Friday as he accused President Cyril Ramaphosa of being a tool of the mining giant Glencore.
He told the state capture enquiry that Ramaphosa knew what Glencore wanted when it made him the chairperson of Optimum Coal Mine.
Source: Getty Images
The company was then sold to the controversial Indian business family, the Guptas according to IOL.
Molefe maintained that Ramaphosa was a crucial figure behind the coal contracts between Glencore and Eskom. He said that Glencore had demanded that the price of coal was increased from R150 a ton to R530 in 2014 which would result in Glencore getting R6 billion over the following three years.
This is not the first time such accusations have thrown at Ramaphosa, in 2016 photojournalist Greg Marinovich interviewed an individual who wanted to remain anonymous that Ramaphosa's company Shanduka Coal was a front for Glencore.
Molefe didn't stop there he went on to defend his association with the Gupta family. He said that they were the only wealthy investors who were prepared to support a state bank which Molefe was trying to get off the ground.
He admitted that he and Ajay Gupta are close friends and that the had no regrets about their friendship despite the accusations of corruption and state capture according to News24.
However, Molefe's testimony was abruptly ended when it was revealed that a colleague of Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo was diagnosed with the coronavirus.
Earlier, Briefly.co.za reported that President Cyril Ramaphosa has vowed to resign from his post as the nation's leader should he be charged with corruption.
Speaking to News24 on Friday afternoon Ramaphosa confirmed that, should he be charged, he would take it upon himself to resign.
Molefe claimed that this had coincided with Ramaphosa's time as a shareholder at Glencore, a contractor awarded business with the state-owned entity, a conflict of interest if true.
In other news, Deputy Chief Justice Raymond says that he told President Cyril Ramaphosa that the work of the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture won't be able to conclude without his input.
Zondo says that the nation's leader has agreed to testify at the Inquiry, personally confirming that he would present himself to the Commission.
Zondo revealed that he had asked President nearly two years ago for Ramaphosa in his personal capacity and as the head of the ANC to testify, saying that 'they've been around when a lot of these things happened'.
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Source: Briefly News
