Gordhan lecture descends into chaos, told he must resign

Gordhan lecture descends into chaos, told he must resign

A lecture by Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan at the Wits School of Governance descended into chaos on Thursday when a group of students interrupted proceedings to demand his resignation. 

Pravin Gordhan

Gordhan delivered a lecture at the University's School of Governance on Eskom, state-owned entities, and the effects of state capture. 


He said that Eskom's coal supply chain had been severely corrupted which has had a dire impact on the state of the power stations. 


"Last night I had a meeting with a coal mining community to get a discussion going about how to ensure that the right quality of coal reaches the power stations. 


"The coal supply chain has been corrupted, so what we have in many instances is coal mixed with rubble, with rock, coal even having steel particles in them and in truck loads. In one case which I was informed about, a pick was what was found and then put into the power station. And that is what causes a huge amount of damage and breakdowns to the system itself.


"The second issue is corruption that still takes place in relation to the supply of fuel oil, in supply of parts, the contracting for maintenance, the over pricing that takes place and there's lots of evidence now around each of these issues."


READ: Pappas laments impact of load shedding on Umngeni infrastructure


"Each of them means more money is being spent than should be spent. Sometimes the truck arrives full of fuel oil and somebody at Eskom signs off on it but is never delivered. The truck turns around and disappears." 


During the question-and-answer session, Witsies asked Gordhan about his role in what has come to be known as the '9 wasted years' during the tenure of former president Jacob Zuma.


He was then Minister of Finance. 


The lecture soon descended into chaos when students chanted, "Pravin must go".


 The Public Enterprises Department has since released a statement condemning the incident "in the strongest terms". 


It says that Gordhan was not kicked out.


"Let us emphasise this most clearly: The Minister was not kicked out. The Minister and DPE will not be intimidated," read the statement. 


"Let us repeat. We will not be intimidated nor threatened by their well-orchestrated performance. We will continue to engage stakeholders all over our country without fear."

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