A bad week for Portia Derby
Derby’s reputation as a capable manager inspired hope that she could engineer a recovery at Transnet. Sadly, she hasn’t
A good week for Karyn Maughan
Jacob Zuma may think Karyn Maughan is an easy target. The most recognisable face of SA’s fourth estate, she is being blamed for the former president’s travails and forced to appear in a frivolous court action where Zuma is portrayed as the “prosecuter” (sic) by his foundation. But Zuma, venal and thuggish to the last, has overreached. Maughan is used to the camera, even those of Zuma’s private paparazzi in court this week, and not unnerved at being the face of press freedom. It’s not just Maughan that Zuma is taking on, formidable as she is, but an institution that has survived worse in SA.
A bad week for Portia Derby
When Portia Derby became CEO of Transnet in 2020, she was greeted with much goodwill, including from the FM. At the time, the state-owned enterprise was in dire straits, having been looted during the Zuma years, and Derby’s reputation as a capable manager inspired hope that she could engineer a recovery. Sadly, she hasn’t. At the beginning she said the right things about attracting private investment, yet last week she revealed a tin ear to the concerns of the mining industry, one of her biggest customers, and this week mining shares tanked as 21,000 Transnet employees went on strike.