The majority union at the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) has alleged that the suspension of the agency’s CEO is part of a broader campaign to sabotage state-owned entities and a push back against the drive to tackle corruption at parastatals.
The Prasa board confirmed at the weekend that Zolani Matthews had been placed on suspension pending an investigation after he apparently failed to declare that he holds a UK passport.
“The suspension took us completely by surprise ... but it only reinforces our belief that there is deliberate sabotage of our state-owned enterprises. We have seen it happening most recently at Eskom, Transnet and now Prasa,” Sonja Carstens, a spokesperson for the United National Transport Union (Untu), told Business Day on Monday.
President Cyril Ramaphosa, who ascended to the highest office on an anti-corruption ticket, has been on a crusade to restore state-owned entities to health. However, his drive has been hampered by persistent problems at parastatals, not least Eskom, the troubled power utility that supplies virtually all of SA’s electricity. Last week Eskom, which is struggling to keep the lights on, said it had handed over evidence of sabotage at some of its power stations to the Hawks.
The Prasa board said it had been made aware of a letter earlier in November from the department of state security stating that Matthews’s top secret security clearance had been declined. It said clearance had been rejected due to his “deliberate” failure to disclose to Prasa that he holds British citizenship.
Prasa said news of the security clearance rejection came as a shock, but after going through a declaration form Matthews signed in May it became clear that he had failed to disclose his dual citizenship.
The board has appointed David Mphelo, Prasa’s chief information officer, to temporarily take over as group CEO.
Matthews is the son of the late struggle veteran Joe Matthews, who at some point lived in exile in the UK. Citing insiders, the Sunday Times reported that Matthews had actually declared that he holds a British passport during an interview with state security officials.
“The truth is that when he was interviewed by state security during the vetting process he did declare that he holds dual citizenship and is willing to relinquish his British passport if he becomes permanent in the position [Prasa CEO]. But everyone knows that just a few weeks ago they wanted to fire him for non-performance,” an insider told the paper.
Carstens said there are many foreigners and holders of dual citizenship employed by state-owned enterprises.
“So what is the problem if we employ a UK citizen? How can you suspend someone because they have UK citizenship when you are supposed to have checked that in the past [before hiring him]?
“We smell a rat. We are extremely upset about the current situation. This is destabilising Prasa all over again. It is very demoralising for workers ... by suspending him we are sabotaging the economy,” Carstens said.
She said Matthews had managed to stabilise Prasa after years of “demolition of rail infrastructure and looting”.
Carstens said the union will wait for the outcome of the Prasa investigation before deciding on its next move.
Prasa, which is responsible for providing rail services, a vital ingredient to boost productivity and stimulate economic growth, has over the years been engulfed in allegations of corruption and mismanagement. This is while the country’s rail services continue to flounder, with Cape Town’s rail lines the hardest hit. Similar to the situation at many other state-owned entities, doubts remain about Prasa’s ability to continue as a going concern.
Bongisizwe Mpondo, who recently served as Prasa administrator, previously told MPs that the agency was broken, with “very little order, if any, in the business”.
Transport minister Fikile Mbalula once described Prasa as “rotten to the core” and poorly led by previous management.
A new board, chaired by former ANC MP Leonard Ramatlakane, was appointed in October last year. Before that, Prasa had not had a permanent board since 2017. Matthews, who holds a master’s degree in public administration from Harvard, joined Prasa in February this year.
The transport department referred all questions to Prasa, saying the board was responsible for appointments and other “career incidents”.
Prasa spokesperson Andiswa Makanda dismissed suggestions that the suspension is part of a plan to destabilise the agency.
“The claim is unfounded. Investigations are under way and due process needs to be followed when faced with such matters,” Makanda said.
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