Letter to the editor: The significance of De Ruyter’s remarks Story by IOL ? 6h ago

Former Eskom CEO Andre De Ruyter’s disclosures on eNCA of the criminal extent of corruption operating within Eskom confirm that under the ANC South Africa has not only become a failed state but also a mafia state.

De Ruyter made reference to four highly organised, sophisticated crime cartels that control the coal supply to power stations. He noted that they have well-armed hit squads, eliminate opposition at will and operate as a mafia.

He observed that crime and corruption are hierarchical and deeply entrenched. Deliberate, ongoing sabotage of equipment ensures that those with maintenance contracts are kept busy and fraudulently rewarded exorbitant sums for their labour. De Ruyter also pointed out an unnamed big wheel politician had shamelessly claimed Eskom was a feeding trough “for some people to eat a little bit [better].”

Predictably, official responses have attempted to downplay De Ruyter’s disclosures. The minister in the Presidency, Mondli Gungubele, dismissed them as “insulting.” The ANC-dominated Central Energy Fund called them “reckless.”

Of course, those who were aware of the crime and sabotage in Eskom, like Gungubele, but lacked the political will to expose it, are now running for cover while disingenuously insisting the government is committed to “cleaning up” corruption.

However, the most significant aspect of what De Ruyter has exposed and over which absolute silence prevails is: What has the National Intelligence Service (NIS) been doing all this time? Were they aware of what De Ruyter has disclosed and if so, why was corrective action not taken? Sabotaging the country’s electricity supply is more than a threat to national security. It is an act of war.

The silence of the NIS and all those in the ANC-riddled fabric of every aspect of governance confirms that, from top to bottom, the ANC is a criminal syndicate, as John Steenhuizen has described them.

Andre De Ruyter is an exceptionally brave and honourable man, a rare example of honesty and integrity. One hopes no harm comes to him.

Duncan spent 34 years as a high school teacher of History and English. Both his dissertations have been adapted for publication under the titles Labourer or Settler. Colonial Natal’s Indian Dilemma and Sugar and Settlers: A history of the Natal South Coast 1850-1910.

* The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media.

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