Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana and his deputy David Masondo allegedly clashed over the Public Investment Corporation's (PIC) governance crisis.
Image: GCIS
A bitter governance war is raging at the government's economic leadership, as Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana and his deputy, David Masondo, find themselves on opposite sides of a crisis threatening to destabilise the Public Investment Corporation (PIC).
At the centre of this clash are disputed investments, clashing directives, and swirling whistleblower allegations.
Sources alleged that the boardroom war reached a flashpoint this week when the PIC board, chaired by Masondo, placed CEO Patrick Dlamini and Chief Investment Officer August van Heerden on precautionary suspension.
The aggressive move was allegedly triggered by an anonymous whistleblower report targeting Dlamini’s management.
The sources claim that Godongwana was kept in the dark regarding the late-night boardroom coup.
Godongwana has openly questioned the board’s unilateral execution of powers, as major executive changes typically require the express alignment of the state shareholder representatives.
At the centre of the crisis is a decade-old investment into Lanseria Airport.
The dispute centers on his initiation of an independent PwC forensic probe into a Lanseria Airport transaction involving Acapulco Trade & Invest 164.
In 2013, the PIC provided financing (initially around R333 million) to Acapulco Trade & Invest 164 to buy a 25% BEE stake in Lanseria Holdings. Acapulco later defaulted on the loan.
After the default, a dispute over share valuation went to a final and binding arbitration tribunal. The panel ruled against the PIC, forcing the state asset manager to pay Acapulco a massive R411m settlement.
The whistleblower report utilised by Masondo's board to suspend Dlamini alleges that the CEO breached protocol by launching the PwC probe without formal board clearance.
Dlamini is also accused of appointing Van Heerden in an acting capacity without board approval or the approval of the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF).
He has also been accused of disclosing his directorship of Lanseria Holdings and then lying to Parliament about his status when he appeared before Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance last year.
This also comes after Masondo announced the referral of Acupulco to the Special Special Investigating Unit (SIU), saying the decision was made directly after receiving legal advice regarding findings and calculation anomalies uncovered in a forensic investigation conducted by PwC.
However, supporters of Dlamini argue that the whistleblower claims are a coordinated smear campaign designed to suppress the damning forensic findings of the PwC report.
The PIC and Treasury on Wednesday did not respond to the questions, while Masondo indicated that he will not respond to media queries while the investigation process by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) is under way.
The investigation follows severe concerns regarding governance, transparency, and leadership stability at the PIC.
During the December 17, 2025 parliamentary proceedings, Dlamini was questioned regarding a controversial BEE investment in Lanseria International Airport.
The questioning focused heavily on the long-running dispute with Acapulco Trade and Invest. In the hearing, lawmakers scrutinised the proposed review of an arbitration award and an admission that the BEE stake in Lanseria Airport had been overvalued by 400%.
Dlamini also faced intense scrutiny over his previous directorships at Lanseria-related entities and his relationship with the infrastructure firm Harith General Partners.
He was appearing alongside Godongwana and Masondo to account for a massive payout to Acapulco Trade and Invest to recover an outstanding loan.
The whistleblower complaint alleged Dlamini failed to declare these potential conflicts of interest and inadequately answered parliamentary questions regarding them.
Meanwhile, the PIC announced the appointment of its CFO, Batandwa Damoyi, as acting CEO with immediate effect, following Dlamini’s suspension.
Spokesperson Sekgoela Sekgoela said the appointment ensures continuity of leadership and the uninterrupted execution of the PIC’s mandate while the relevant internal processes are underway.