Dear Member,

We have an update for you on the matter of Mr Brian Molefe’s court appeal. His application for leave to appeal an earlier court ruling will be heard by a full bench of the Pretoria High Court early next year. 

In our Integrated Annual Report, we shared that litigation had continued through the 2022-23 financial year concerning the obligation of the former Eskom CEO to refund the money paid to him by EPPF and to bear related legal costs. Mr Molefe was admitted as a member of the Fund in September 2015, on information submitted by his employer, and was paid out by EPPF when he retired early. The High Court later ruled that Mr Molefe had been ineligible to receive a pension from the Fund because he had been a temporary or fixed-term employee. The court directed him to refund the benefit paid to him. 

Mr Molefe’s subsequent appeals in the Supreme Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court were unsuccessful. The Fund then applied for a High Court order directing him to repay us. On 4 July 2022, the court confirmed this obligation and awarded legal costs against him. It also ruled that the Fund must repay Eskom, with interest, the money it received from the utility to fund Mr Molefe’s early retirement. 

In September 2022, the Fund complied with this ruling to avoid accrual of further interest. But we withheld contributions received from Mr Molefe during his time at Eskom and the interest that accrued.

In March 2023 Mr Molefe was given leave to appeal the July 2022 judgment before a full bench of the High Court. 

That appeal is now expected to be heard on 12 February 2025. The Fund will be opposing the appeal. 

Kind regards
The EPPF team