Matshela Koko corruption case struck off roll for now

Former Eskom Interim GCEO Matshela Koko breathed a sigh of relief on Tuesday following the court decision to strike his corruption case off the roll.

The Middelburg Specialised Commercial Crimes Court found that there had been unreasonable delays in the R2.2 billion corruption case against Koko and his co-accused.

Koko was accused of being involved in a scheme which sought to help Swiss engineering firm ABB secure a lucrative R2.2 billion contract at the Kusile Power Station in Mpumalanga.

In a statement published on his X social networking account, Koko accused the ANC of weaponizing the National Prosecution Authority “against its children.”

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“A cabinet decision was taken on January 18, 2018, to dismiss me from Eskom because the cabinet in its wisdom decided I was corrupt. President Cyril Ramaphosa admitted on August 11, 2021, at the Zondo Commission that he fired me, but it was a joint decision of the Cabinet,” Koko recalled.

“[Ramaphosa] claimed that he fired me because he wanted to avert a severe crisis at Eskom when in truth he was collapsing Eskom so that it could be unbundled to allow the IPPs unfettered access at the expense of Eskom.”

Koko added that the National Prosecuting Authority had to charge him “to justify the unlawful cabinet decision.” However, a year after the first arrests were made, the State was still not ready to go ahead with the trial.

In his ruling, Magistrate Stanley Jacobs said it was unacceptable that the State was still asking the court for a postponement on a case it had been investigating since 2017.

The Magistrate ordered that the case can only be reinstated in the future with the permission of the National Director of Public Prosecution (NDPP).

“The NPA misdirected itself by charging me. It did not act without fear, favour or prejudice. They were doing somebody a favour. What is hurtful to me is that the NPA was commended by well-respected constituencies in our society for the unlawful arrests,” Koko asserted.

He contended that the ruling party, African National Congress, is a threat to the rule of law and the constitution, adding: “We must make 2024 better than 1994 by making NPA a Section 9 institution. The hyenas cannot look after the sheep.”