This investigation follows allegations made by suspended chief procurement officer Solly Tshitangano against De Ruyter earlier this month, at a meeting with Parliament’s standing committee on public accounts.In a statement, the board said: “In light of the allegation of racism that has been made in the public domain against Group Chief Executive (GCE) André de Ruyter, the Eskom board of directors has resolved to initiate an investigation in order to establish the veracity and the basis to the allegation.”
“The allegation not only brings Eskom into disrepute, but it also threatens to detract and distract the focus of the executive team and the GCE in particular from their critical job of restoring Eskom to operational and financial sustainability.”
It said it will appoint an independent senior counsel to conduct the investigation. The council will be empowered to interview any person that may be of assistance in the probe, and consider any evidence, and will then report back to the board and make recommendations.
The board said it is committed to transparency and will provide updates at critical stages of the investigation.
