Photo by: Bloomberg
The case involving former Eskom managers accused of fraud, corruption and money laundering, related to a deal at the Kusile power station, has once again been postponed.
On Tuesday, the power utility's former senior manager France Hlakudi appeared at the Palm Ridge Specialised Crimes Court in Johannesburg.
Hlakudi was joined by his co-accused, ex-group executive of the group capital division Abram Masango, businessman Maphoko Kgomoeswana, Tubular Construction CEO Antonio Trindade and former Eskom contractor Michael Lomas.
The charges against the accused relate to a contract worth R745-million at Eskom's Kusile power station in Mpumalanga between 2014 and 2017. Hlakudi and Masanga allegedly walked away with R30-million each in bribes.
The case has been beset by a series of postponements since it began in 2019. Some of the delays were due to Hlakudi changing lawyers.
In the latest hearing, the defence was meant to argue its unreasonable delay application after accusing the prosecution of disclosing information little by little.
The legal representatives of the accused also said they needed more time to study investigator Paul O' Sullivan's book Stop Me If You Can, to see if it had any bearing on the case of the accused, as well as other documents from the prosecution.
The book, which delves into high-profile corruption cases and State capture, was published in April this year.
But the defence abandoned its application. Instead, the accused's representatives asked for yet another delay, this time to consider its options going forward, and whether or not they will reinstate their application.
The case will be back in court on 4 November.