New evidence has emerged allegedly showing that Eskom executive Matshela Koko broke the rules of his suspension by contacting Eskom employees, according to Business Day.
Koko was suspended pending a disciplinary hearing following allegations that he did not declare a conflict of interest when his stepdaughter's company was awarded a large Eskom tender. He was reinstated, but was asked to resign last week by the new Eskom board, and by Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba.
Unlike his counterparts, CFO Anoj Singh and Prish Govender, he has not done so.
Business Day reportedly has a phone recording showing that Koko spoke to his colleagues, including Singh, after he was suspended in August 2017.
Business Day also reported that four senior Eskom employees have also been suspended for the same reasons as Singh and Govender -- that they were allegedly implicated in approving a huge payout to global consultancy firm McKinsey and its local subcontractor, the Gupta-linked firm Trillian, despite being advised that the contract was unlawful.
Koko was reportedly not charged for his part on the Trillian payments despite several legal opinions that he should be.
Despite his suspension explicitly stating that he must not contact Eskom employees, phone records reportedly show that he contacted at least six Eskom employees, including former Eskom chair Zethembe Khoza.
Koko accused Business Day of running an "illegal intelligence operation" against him when contacted for comment.
Koko is due to appear before the Parliamentary committee investigating state capture at Eskom on Wednesday.
According to Fin24, on Tuesday, Koko, in his submission to the inquiry, alleged that it was Eskom's former head of legal, Suzanne Daniels, who spearheaded payments to McKinsey and Trillian, and not him. Daniels denied this.
"I deny knowledge of how exactly the payments to Trillian were authorised or processed," Koko reportedly said.
Last week, Business Day reported that golden-handshake talks were underway between Eskom and Koko. He has reportedly refused to resign.
On Tuesday, Eskom spokesperson Khulu Phasiwe told Eyewitness News (EWN) that the power utility had heard nothing from Koko's lawyers about his resignation.
"There was a plea from the minister of finance to both Mr Koko and Mr Singh to do the right thing and resign. The appeal was that this would be in the interests of the country. Mr Singh was quick off the mark but it still remains to be seen how Mr Koko will react," he reportedly said.