Johannesburg – Former public enterprises minister Malusi Gigaba’s fear that he would be arrested came true on Tuesday morning, days after he had preempted the action against him.
Just over a week ago, the former minister posted on X that he expected to be arrested, and he did not know what the charges were.
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Although his fears of arrest on 7 November 2025 never materialised, Gigaba was today, 18 November 2025, brought before the Palm Ridge Specialised Commercial Crime Court to face charges of corruption.
The Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC) formally added Gigaba as the fifth accused in a corruption case involving former Transnet executives, at the Palm Ridge Specialised Commercial Crime Court today, 18 November 2025.
However, the matter was postponed to 30 January 2026 for the disclosure of the docket, as well as the provision of an indictment, and a date for the transfer of the case to the high court.
IDAC has on 7 November 2025, issued Dr Gigaba with summons to appear at the Palm Ridge Specialised Commercial Crime Court, to which he agreed to present himself, wherein his matter is combined with that of the other accused.
IDAC Spokesperson Henry Mamothame said Gigaba’s court appearance relates to a period between November 2010 to May 2014, when the alleged offences were committed during his tenure as the Minister in the Department of Public Enterprises.
Gigaba is charged together with Anoj Singh, the former Group Chief Financial Officer, Brian Molefe, the former Group Chief Executive Officer of Transnet, Siyabonga Gama, the former Chief Executive Officer, and Thamsanqa Jiyane, who was the Chief Procurement Officer in the Transport Freight Rail division within Transnet.
The former minister’s court appearance emanates from the period in which Transnet engaged in the process of acquiring locomotives to expand and modernise the country’s rail infrastructure, during which the tender processes were flouted.
Three contracts were irregularly awarded to provide Transnet with 95, 100, and 1 064 locomotives in three different contracts, resulting in a loss of billions of rands for Transnet.
The State alleges that, during the period that Gigaba was public enterprises minister, he, on various occasions, allegedly accepted and received undisclosed amounts of cash from members of the fugitive, corruption-accused Gupta brothers.
All the accused were presented with an updated charge sheet.
