PRASA (Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa)
The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) operates commuter rail services and the Shosholoza Meyl intercity trains. During the tenure of CEO Lucky Montana (2009–2015), PRASA was one of the most extensively looted state-owned enterprises of the Zuma era, with the Zondo Commission Vol 5 dedicating extensive findings to governance failures and corruption at the agency. Zondo recommended establishing a dedicated special commission to investigate PRASA’s near-total collapse and identify who benefited.
Lucky Montana era (2009–2015): Montana ran PRASA with minimal board oversight, directing multimillion-rand contracts irregularly. Boards were kept out of the loop on contract decisions. Irregular expenditure rose steeply, and PRASA’s dysfunctionality spread across multiple departments. The Zondo Commission heard “extensive evidence” of alleged wrongdoing. Brian Molefe was appointed to the PRASA board (later as CEO from 2014) and began exposing the Montana-era corruption, which brought him into direct conflict with Montana. Molefe sought help from the ANC Top Six at meetings in July–August 2015 and separately from President Jacob Zuma in August 2015. Neither provided meaningful support. Minister of Transport Dipuo Peters ultimately fired the Molefe-led board in March 2017; a High Court ruling briefly reinstated it before the board’s term ended in July 2017.
Ramaphosa’s accountability gap: The Zondo Commission Vol 5 specifically found that Cyril Ramaphosa, as Deputy President, “fell short of the standard that would have been expected from him in a matter involving fighting corruption” at PRASA. Zondo held that Ramaphosa should have at minimum followed up with Molefe to ensure the anti-corruption efforts at PRASA received support. This finding — alongside the cadre deployment misrepresentation in Vol 6 and the Bosasa donation in Vol 3 — constituted Zondo’s direct criticisms of Ramaphosa personally.
Connections
- Cyril Ramaphosa — Zondo Vol 5 found he “fell short” in supporting anti-corruption at PRASA as Deputy President
- Jacob Zuma — Molefe sought Zuma’s help to address Montana-era corruption (August 2015); no adequate response
- Zondo Commission — Vol 5 extensive findings on PRASA governance and corruption; recommended special commission
- State Security Agency (SSA) — PRASA’s Brian Molefe was later fired from Eskom and PRASA amid SSA/Gupta-era interference
- Eskom — Brian Molefe moved from PRASA CEO to Eskom CEO; brought into both institutions during Gupta-era board reshaping