Eskom’s New CEO Dan Marokane Was Suspended After Being Implicated in State Capture, Mzansi Confused

• Eskom appointed Dan Marokane as the new state-owned enterprise's group CEO
• His appointment came even though he was suspended as a senior manager after being implicated in State Capture
• South Africans were puzzled at how Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan could employ such a person

Tebogo Mokwena, Briefly News's current affairs journalist, offered coverage of current affairs and societal issues during his seven years at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News.

Eskom has a new CEO, and his name is Dan Marokane. The Department of Public Enterprises announced this on 8 December 2023 after appointing him as Eskom's new Group CEO. Moerane has a checkered past, and South Africans called it into question, wondering if he will lead the embattled state utility.

Eskom's new CEO announced

In a statement shared by @CoruscaKhaya on X, formerly Twitter, Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan announced that Morokane will get on board no later than 31 March next year.

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Puzzlingly, the statement also admitted that Marokane was one of the four former Eskom senior managers suspended during the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture. Marokane was also at Tongaat-Hulett’s helm.

The statement assures South Africans that a thorough background check was done on him and that he is fit enough to be appointed Eskom's CEO. View the complete statement here.

His past surprised Mzansi

South Africans disagreed with his appointment and discussed his involvement in State Capture.

Invictus said:

“He’s a front. Having an MBA doesn’t mean he will have the power to make changes. He’s Pravin’s man. Since he did not approve the initial list of three people sent to him, he wanted a new list with his people.”

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Chihwale asked:

“If he was suspended for state capture, why would he be given the CEO post for the same organisation?”

Siphesihle Mnisi exclaimed:

“I just hope he doesn’t get embroiled in the political side of Eskom, like releasing useless statements an PR interviews to show off his public-speaking acumen."

Tebogo pointed out:

“This man is rewarded for his flawed State Capture Commission testimony.”

Matome was confused.

“The guy was suspended mos. Why is he appointed by Gordhan and not Ramokgopa?”

Andre De Ruyter earned millions in the 2022/23 period

Speaking of Eskom and its CEOs, Briefly News reported that former Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter made a whopping R7 million in the 2022/23 financial year.

De Ruyter resigned early this year and made about R20K a day during his tenure. This is although Eskom suffered a R23.9 billion net loss in the same period. De Ruyter also made news when he wrote an explosive book that aimed to expose wide-scale corruption in the state-owned entity.

Source: Briefly News