barbara hogan Eskom

2 October 2008. South Africa. New Minister of Health, Barbara Hogan.

State capture inquiry: Barbara Hogan is coming for Zuma’s head

Hogan is expected to deliver all the shock in today’s inquiry.

barbara hogan Eskom

2 October 2008. South Africa. New Minister of Health, Barbara Hogan.

Former Minister of Public Enterprises, Barbara Hogan, will get a day in the hot seat at Deputy Chief Justice, Raymond Zondo’s commission of inquiry into state capture.

What we know about Barbara Hogan

Her inclusion in the inquiry was set in motion by the former ANC MP, Vytjie Mentor. In her testimony, Mentor alleged that in her meeting with Ajay Gupta and former president Jacob Zuma, she was offered Hogan’s position, granted that she would follow through with the cancellation of South African Airways’ (SAA) flight route to Mumbai, India.

Read – State capture inquiry: Pravin Gordhan has a lot to get off his chest

After she had refused this, Malusi Gigaba was then given the position and Hogan was asked to step down. Allegedly, Gigaba went ahead with the cancellation of the route, placing Jet Airways as the courier of the South Africa-India route.

During her tenure as the Minister of Public Enterprises from April 2009 until October 2010, Hogan oversaw the appointment of state-owned entities’ (SOEs) board members in parastatals such as Transnet, SAA and Eskom.

Although it was mostly known in the corridors of a corrupt government, it has become clear now that Hogan was the central figure in the possible tale about how the state was captured.

Read – State capture inquiry: EFF rubbish Nhlanhla Nene testimony

Hogan expected to tell all about Zuma meddling

Furthermore, The Citizen reported that

She is expected to share insights into her turbulent tenure as DPE minister, with claims that Zuma made it so difficult for her to fully perform her job and interfered in her appointing a director-general in her own department.

As part of Zuma’s delegation during his state visit to India in June 2010, Hogan will also be able to tell the commission how the Guptas pushed hard for government to cease the Johannesburg-Mumbai SAA flight route – a plan opposed by then SAA chairperson Cheryl Carolus.

Hogan left her position with a reputation for fighting for good corporate governance. She was pitted against the ANC’s bigwigs on multiple occasions. The chickens have come to roost and the state capture inquiry is expected to be explosive if Nhlanhla Nene’s was anything to go by.