Norma Mngoma Claims Guptas Influenced SOE Appointments

Former Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba’s estranged wife, Norma Mngoma, has laid it all bare at the state capture inquiry.

The state capture commission heard on Monday that former Minister Malusi Gigaba knew the Guptas influenced his appointment and those of Brian Molefe and Siyabonga Gama as CEOs of Eskom and Transnet.

She’s spoken about the Guptas’ influence on appointments at state-owned enterprises.

She says Ajay Gupta and her husband would often argue about who should be appointed.

“Most of the time in Transnet, it will be the people that Ajay felt they need to be appointed or need to leave or may restructure, they would just argue about it because Malusi had his own favourites while Ajay had his own.

“SAA most of the time, when he’s with Ajay they will be talking about the board. There was a lot of discomfort between Malusi and the chairperson of SAA, sometimes they would discuss that. He told me that the Guptas don’t like him,” she said.

“They told him there would be a new restructuring. Someone else will move to Eskom and then Brian Dames will leave. I didn’t know how the process would happen but it did.”

Mngoma says she knew who would be appointed even before the appointee.

Gupta Wedding

Mngoma said that Gigaba personally welcomed Gupta wedding guests at the Waterkloof Military Airbase when the family’s plane landed in the infamous 2013 abuse of state power.

Many ministers have previously distanced themselves from any knowledge that arrangements for the Guptas to land their plane at Waterkloof had been approved by Cabinet.

And senior officials have refused to name ministers that gave them instructions.

But Mngoma said her estranged husband not only knew about the abuse of this national key point – but personally ensured that it happened.

Bribes

Norma Mngoma has described to the state capture inquiry how she saw her husband, Malusi Gigaba, counting money given to him by the Gupta brothers.

Mngoma also detailed how the Guptas gave her husband a number of gifts, including a BMW.

She also claims the former Finance Minister was given jewellery and money.