'Detractors want to blame Eskom's woes on Cyril Ramaphosa'

Former Eskom CEO Brian Molefe implicated President Cyril Ramaphosa at the state capture commission of inquiry last week and his detractors have been milking it.

On Friday, Molefe implied that President Ramphosa had a hand in Eskom’s collapse over the years.

He repeated Matshela Koko’s allegations that Glencore (one of Eskom's main coal suppliers) sold shares to Ramphosa to use his political power to its benefit and to disadvantage the power utility.

Back in 2012, Ramaphosa was appointed chairperson and non-executive director of Optimum coal mine, owned by mining giant Glencore.

EWN's group editor-in-chief Mahlatse Mahlase says Ramaphosa's critics have been emboldened by Molefe's testimony at the state capture commission of inquiry.

Over the weekend, some of Ramaphosa's detractors in the ANC shared an old video of Molefe speaking about Glencore's business dealing's in Parliament.

#BrianMolefe (@BrianMbm1): "People talk about state capture, but if you want to talk about capture properly - substantive capture - you have to go to all those power stations and mines that are close to them, and the contracts between those mines and the power stations...". pic.twitter.com/GGibHE9sti

— Carl Niehaus (@niehaus_carl) January 16, 2021

Meanwhile, Ramaphosa has denied allegations that he was at the centre of Eskom's downfall.

What Brian Molefe was implying there at the state capture commission was that Glencore was using its position and close ties with President Cyril Ramaphosa to get more money out of Eskom.

Mahlatse Mahlase, Group editor-in-chief - Eyewitness News

Over the weekend, some of President Ramaphosa's detractors in the ANC have started distributing a video of Brian Molefe recorded probably around 2017 as he was explaining what was going on there - basically accusing Glencore of putting a gun to his head as they wanted to increase the amount of money that they wanted out of Eskom.

Mahlatse Mahlase, Group editor-in-chief - Eyewitness News

He's saying that those close ties [with Ramaphosa] are why Glencore had the muscle to put the gun to his head, as he had put it then.

Mahlatse Mahlase, Group editor-in-chief - Eyewitness News

This is part of what we have also been hearing from Matshela Koko, where they want to blame a lot of Eskom's woes on Cyril Ramaphosa

Mahlatse Mahlase, Group editor-in-chief - Eyewitness News

Listen to the discussion on Breakfast with Refilwe Moloto:

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