Eskom board chairperson Mpho Makwana has revealed that Andre de Ruyter actually resigned as CEO of the struggling power utility early on Monday morning this week.
Speaking during a media briefing earlier today, Makwana said the power utility could not immediately inform the nation of de Ruyter’s resignation that day as government stakeholders had to be consulted first on the way forward.
However, Makwana said Eskom’s hand was pushed into confirming the resignation yesterday after the story was leaked to the media.
“In terms of this conversation it is as indicated that he had taken me into his confidence that he intended to resign. This was on Monday the 12th around 07h30 in the morning, it was in the pre-scheduled meeting that we had as part of our ongoing status updates,” Makwana said.
“I accepted that resignation and agreed with him that he would afford me the opportunity to embark on a consultative process. Eskom has got a systemic impact on South Africa and various endeavours of South Africa’s general life in terms of keeping the lights on and is vital to the economy.
“And so sadly, while we were in the middle of important consultations the story leaked and we had to then post a statement that we did yesterday.”
Makwana said as a board they had enjoyed working with de Ruyter and they had found him to be a professional and collegial executive to have worked with.
“When I engaged with Andre on his resignation I was guided by among others our constitutional value of respecting each other’s dignity and I assured him that we would give him an opportunity to also address a platform such as this so that he can take the nation into his confidence,” he said.
The Eskom board has confirmed that there is no plan for Makwana to become an interim CEO and that a comprehensive executive search will be conducted to find a suitably qualified candidate.
De Ruyter has agreed to stay for an additional period beyond the stipulated 30-days’ notice to ensure continuity while we urgently embark on a search for his successor. His last day at Eskom will be 31 March 2023.
De Ruyetr’s resignation drew a mixture of reaction from different quarters of society, with labour unions celebrating it as a relief from power cuts which have worsened to record levels this year.
However, some business organisations expressed concern about stability at Eskom and the country’s renewable energy plans.
De Ruyter also recently faced harsh criticism from the Cabinet ministers, with minerals resources and energy minister Gwede Mantashe accusing him of “agitating or the overthrow of the state” by implementing heightened loadshedding.
Speaking during the same media briefing, de Ruyter confirmed that the recent media comments by ministers made him feel he had “lost the support of the political economy”.
“I am in a position where I’m also dependent on the support of the broader political economy and that support is absolutely critical to enabling the success of Eskom going forward,” de Ruyter said.
“Given recent media reports, I’m unfortunately currently in a position where I do not regard that position as being tenable and I have accordingly decided to step back.”
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