The Public Investment Corporation has appointed CFO Batandwa Damoyi as acting CEO following Patrick Dlamini's precautionary suspension as governance concerns continue to dominate South Africa's largest asset manager.
Image: IOL / File
The Public Investment Corporation (PIC) has appointed its chief financial officer, Batandwa Damoyi, as acting chief executive officer with immediate effect, as the state asset manager seeks to restore stability following the precautionary suspension of CEO Patrick Dlamini earlier this week.
The appointment comes as the PIC continues to grapple with an escalating governance crisis that has placed renewed scrutiny on the institution responsible for managing approximately R3.6 trillion in assets, including funds on behalf of the Government Employees Pension Fund.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the PIC board said Damoyi's appointment followed Dlamini's precautionary suspension and was intended to ensure uninterrupted leadership while internal processes continued.
Patrick Dlamini, The Public Investment Corporation has suspended its CEO and CIO amid a governance crisis linked to a controversial investment in Lanseria Airport, raising concerns over its management of pension funds.
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"The Board believes Ms. Damoyi's appointment will ensure continuity of leadership and the uninterrupted execution of the PIC's mandate, while the relevant internal processes are underway," the board said.
It added: "The Board is confident that Ms. Damoyi will provide the leadership and stability required to ensure the PIC continues to serve its clients and stakeholders with integrity and excellence."
Damoyi, a Chartered Accountant CA(SA), has more than 17 years of executive leadership experience in financial management, governance and strategic leadership across both the public and private sectors.
She joined the PIC as chief financial officer in April 2024, where the board said she had "played a key role in strengthening the Corporation's financial stewardship and governance."
Her appointment follows Monday's announcement that Dlamini had been placed on precautionary suspension to allow for an independent investigation into allegations of impropriety contained in a whistleblower report submitted to the board last month.
The board stressed at the time that the suspension "does not, in any way, constitute a finding nor is it a pronouncement of any wrongdoing on the part of the CEO."
The governance upheaval has also seen August van Heerden step down as acting chief investment officer following a resolution by the Government Employees Pension Fund, with long serving investment executive Leon Smit appointed as acting CIO.
The developments follow weeks of heightened scrutiny over the PIC's governance, including whistleblower allegations, the publication of a confidential forensic report relating to the Lanseria Airport investment, referrals to the Special Investigating Unit and ongoing legal disputes linked to the matter.
The institution has also faced growing political pressure.
Earlier this week, Democratic Alliance finance spokesperson Dr Mark Burke called on Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance to urgently convene in camera hearings into the governance challenges at the PIC.
Burke argued that Parliament had failed in its oversight role, saying, "There is no longer only smoke at the PIC, the fire is blazing. The casualties are mounting."
He added that Parliament needed "to call in person, in camera hearings over multiple days to hear what the board and executives tasked with investing public pension money are doing."
The PIC board has maintained that it remains committed to "the highest standards of governance and institutional integrity" as investigations continue.
The appointment of an acting chief executive is expected to provide operational continuity while the investigation into the allegations against Dlamini proceeds.
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