By Jackie Cameron
- The plan to fix Eskom is working. So says Deputy President David Mabuza as South Africa has been hit hard by extended power outages – partly the result of Eskom management ineptitude. Bloomberg reports that the debt-laden power utility on Sunday scaled back power outages in a sign that electricity supply may be improving. Eskom said it would cut 1,000 megawatts from the grid from 12pm to 10pm, half of what was initially scheduled. The utility will maintain supply cuts at the same levels on Monday but ramp up outages to 2,000 megawatts from 4pm to 10 pm and the schedule could be repeated until Wednesday, it said in a statement Sunday.
- Forensics for justice founder Paul O’Sullivan has stopped a R184m fraud in its tracks by busting a KZN ANC official who tried to steal funds from the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government. BizNews reports that Upscale Property, owned by Thulani Xulu, a KwaZulu-Natal ANC MPL, tried to help itself to R100m in a tender scam. O’Sullivan’s investigation found that Xulu had enlisted his daughter, Silindile, as the sole director of the company, paving the way for him to receive the funds as a silent partner. Tender documents also reveal that Upscale Properties had submitted a tender bid for R184m while another bidder, the Rebosis Property, Fund had tendered for R79m, a difference of R104m. The exposure of the Xulu scam comes as Covid-19 relief funds have been misused by various state entities, including the department of labour, provincial departments and the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS). In one case, GCIS allegedly paid about R15,000 for a digital thermometer, which sells for less than R1,000 in shops. For fascinating insights on Paul O’Sullivan, do listen to the interview with him on the inaugural The Alec Hogg Show. It is available now on BizNews Radio on the BizNews home page.
- America’s ambassador to Zimbabwe urged the Southern African Development Community to be more proactive in helping resolve the challenges faced by the country. An SA delegation heads to Harare on Tuesday to help the country fix its problems. Zimbabwe’s state-owned Sunday Mail newspaper reported that Ace Magashule, the ANC’s Secretary-General would lead the 10-member South African delegation. The International Monetary Fund warned earlier this year that Zimbabwe is in the grip of an economic and humanitarian crisis, with inflation soaring in triple-digits. Critics of the government have been jailed.
- Truworths, like other retailers of non-essential services, has been hit hard by Covid-19 containment. It reported a 28.2% decline in full-year earnings
