Matshela Koko Eskom board

Matshela Koko will appear in court on Thursday – Photo by Gallo Images / Mail & Guardian / Madelene Cronjé

Ex-Eskom CEO Koko denies claims he ‘fixed contracts’ for stepdaughter

Matshela Koko has branded a journalist ‘a pig’ on Sunday, after he was implicated in a web of nepotism and corruption relating to Eskom.

Matshela Koko Eskom board

Matshela Koko will appear in court on Thursday – Photo by Gallo Images / Mail & Guardian / Madelene Cronjé

Matshela Koko has come out all guns blazing on Sunday, after he objected to an article published by the Sunday Times. In a display of sheer contempt for the claims made in Graeme Hosken’s investigative piece, the former Eskom CEO branded the journalist as ‘a pig’ and ‘scum’. But what’s got the engineer so hot under the collar?

Former Eskom supremo accused of ‘nepotism’

Some of the accusations against Matshela Koko are related to the ABB company. It’s said that they enjoyed a cosy relationship with Eskom, and Hosken states that this led to ‘subcontracting issue’ that dips its toes in nepotistic waters.

“ABB executives told the SIU that Koko allegedly promised the company R6.6bn in contracts if it subcontracted Impulse International. Koko’s stepdaughter, Koketso Choma, was a director at Impulse, who won an R800m contract from ABB.”

Matshela Koko rejects allegations, slams Sunday Times

Koko, however, won’t be taking this one lying down. He has vowed to escalate his complaints to the press ombudsman, arguing that Sunday Times got their facts wrong: In total, the SIU has told the NPA to investigate 66 cases of corruption and fraud against Eskom – with one including a company that belongs to a friend of Matshela’s.

However, Mr. Koko is annoyed that the headline and text implicates him in the alleged wrongdoings of his friend. That’s when things got nasty, and the one-time top executive at Eskom expressed his disdain for the reporter in question.

“I will be referring this article to the press ombudsman. This headline seeks to create an impression that a company belonging to Koko has attracted the attention of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) – because of ‘the rot’ it is involved in. The writer is a scum of a journalist, and a pig” | Matshela Koko

  • Former ANC Minister Derek Hanekom has also weighed in to the debate – and ended up getting an earful from Koko