James on Die Groot Onbyt
​I spoke to Johrné van Huyssteen and the team at Die Groot Onbyt about The Watson family and my latest book The Bosasa Billions.

Will South Africa be okay?

With everything going on in our beautiful country, you might be wondering "Will South Africa be okay?"

​Jan-Jan Joubert has a new book out that tackles 17 key questions people most ask him. I contributed one chapter, on Eskom.

James-Brent Styan op Kwêla

Earlier this year I was in the hot seat at the Kwêla studio to discuss my findings and the journey to writing "Steinhoff en die Stellenbosse Boys".

Sabotage at Eskom?

"Sabotage is a big claim to make and not something made lightly." James-Brent Styan, author of Blackout: The Eskom Crisis spoke to Refilwe Moloto on CapeTalk and shared my thoughts on the claims that Eskom's problems stem from sabotage. 

Can Bosasa carry the blame for the DA’s demise?

"The Bosasa Billions explains in easy language just how wide the web was that Gavin Watson and his team had created to wiggle their way into the pockets, and influence, of various high-powered politicians and civil servants." 

BizNews Radio interview: 

Meet James Styan, author of SA's new bestseller The Bosasa Billions
In this recent interview on BizNews Radio James-Brent Styan offers the similarities found between Watson and former Steinhoff CEO Markus Jooste, key personality in one of his previous quick-off-the-mark books about SA's biggest corporate collapse.

Extract: The Bosasa Billions: The Watsons and the arson charges

In January 1987 Valence, Ronnie and Cheeky Watson went on trial for arson, fraud and attempted murder (of two employees who had been severely burnt) after their Port Elizabeth home burnt down. All three denied the charges. Gavin was not charged in the case, but he was questioned by the police. It was a trial unlike anything the Eastern Cape had ever seen. The public gallery was always packed with black supporters of the Watson brothers. ​

Watson was untouchable, ‘Bosasa Billions’ co-author says

For years state capture was largely linked to the infamous Gupta family who allegedly took about billions out of SA after ravaging state-owned enterprises such as Eskom and Transnet. At the launch of The Bosasa Billions in Port Elizabeth in September James-Brent Styan explained that the capturing of the state did not start with the Gupta family... 

Jacaranda FM interview
Co-author James-Brent Styan joined Rian van Heerden to talk about his book 'The Bosasa Billions' and state capture in South Africa.
State capture in South Africa is one of the most problematic situations we are facing. 
James-Brent Styan has been the Media Liaison Officer for the Western Cape Minister of Local Government and Environmental Affairs since 2014. Previously Styan was a senior political correspondent for Media24 in Parliament, after working as a financial reporter in Johannesburg for a number of years.

'The Bosasa Billion' was launched recently and was invited by Rian van Heerden to talk about his book and the current state capture in South Africa. 

Extract: The Bosasa Billions

The Bosasa Billions recounts Angelo Agrizzi’s corruption allegations against his former boss. This extract outlines claims that Agrizzi wanted to capture Bosasa: 

Watch: The Bosasa Billions book launch

Erin Bates in conversation with James-Brent Styan and Paul Vecchiatto at the Bosasa Billions book launch at the Open Book Festival in September 2019.

State Capture:

Bosasa and Watson Expert Panel Break
ICYMI: James-Brent Styan, author of The Bosasa Billions, joined Gushwell Brooks and Kyle Cowan, investigative journalist for News 24 to discuss the explosive case that is the death of Gavin Watson and what this means for the Bosasa Investigation.

OPINION: The enigma that was Gavin Watson


​As the authors of The Bosasa Billions, we were shocked to hear of Watson's untimely and unexpected death on Monday morning, August 26. He, along with his family, played a pivotal and controversial role in the shaping of South African politics and business. We would have dearly wanted to see Watson appear before the commission of inquiry into state capture to tell his side of the story as we believe he had the most in-depth knowledge of all involved. Our sincerest condolences to his family and loved ones.

​A new chapter in state capture: 

The cult of Bosasa

With South Africans still reeling from the revelations of state capture, the next bombshell hit the country: Bosasa – grand-scale corruption that has cost taxpayers billions.

​Whistle-blower Angelo Agrizzi and Bosasa boss Gavin Watson soon became household names while gripping testimony before the Zondo commission held the public in thrall: little black books, elaborate bribes and walk-in vaults.
​
In The Bosasa Billions, James-Brent Styan and co-writer Paul Vecchiatto tell the story of how one company hijacked the state to establish an extensive tender network stretching right to the top of the ANC government.

Hot off the press:

The Bosasa Billions
​In The Bosasa Billions, best-selling author James-Brent Styan and co-writer Paul Vecchiatto uncover the sordid story of how one company exploited the greed of corrupt politicians and bureaucrats to establish an extensive tender network stretching right to the top of the ANC government.

Its cast of characters include:
• Angelo Agrizzi, the whistleblower who makes new revelations to Styan about the secrets behind Bosasa's glittering profit margins,
• Vernie Petersen, the prisons boss who waged a lonely battle against the dark forces taking over his department, and
​• Gavin Watson, the ultra-religious Bosasa puppet master who parlayed his family's struggle credentials into vast wealth while leading his employees in prayer every morning. Ultimately, however, Bosasa was not in the business of saving souls, but selling them.

Flashback Friday

4 reasons the ANC has only itself to blame for the Eskom crisis
Picture
Photo by Gallo Images / Netwerk24 / Felix Dlangamandla
Earlier this week we learned that Power utility Eskom has reported a net loss after tax of R20.7bn for the 2019 financial year, with municipal debt rising to some R20bn. The power utility attributed the loss to a lower-than-expected 5.23% tariff increase granted by the energy price regulator for the 2018/19 financial year, a 1.82% decline in sales volumes, an above inflation wage settlement with unions, as well as the abovementioned escalating municipal debt. Read more

With talks of load-shedding rearing it's ugly head again in the near future, let's flash back to a piece James-Brent Styan wrote for News24 in February earlier this year.
​
The political capturing of Eskom started in earnest in 2008 when the company started handing out tenders and contracts for its new build program which at that time was worth around R385bn over five years.
​
Is the president is being briefed regularly, if not daily about the Eskom situation given the clear vulnerability and risk to the economy. It seems that even with the efforts made in the pas few months the president is still largely unaware of how dire things really are. It appears to be a massive Ramafailure.

By the Book: Q&A with James Brent-Styan

News24 recently interviewed James about books, his childhood favourites and what you'll find on his nightstand while he's writing.

Pravin Gordhan explains Eskom’s ‘winter plan’ to the nation on 'The Money Show'

Eskom is aiming to put an end to load-shedding but it will take hard work and a bit of time, Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan said on Wednesday. If the utility fails to avoid load shedding; the aim is to limit it to “stage one”. 

Gordhan announced a “winter plan” at a briefing to give an update on the power grid and plans to stabilise the electricity supply.
The Money Show’s Bruce Whitfield interviewed Gordhan and also asked James-Brent Styan (Author of "Blackout: The Eskom Crisis) for comment.

"I remain very concerned about the management at Eskom… They didn’t mention municipal debt. We’re sitting with municipalities that owe R17 billion. Soweto by itself owes another R17 billion… Eskom [employs] massively too many people… Eskom is heading for a loss… of R30 billion! I am astounded by the financial challenges at Eskom." — James-Brent Styan

Anant Singh To Produce Biopic Of Heart Transplant Pioneer Christiaan Barnard

PictureAnant Singh
EXCLUSIVE: Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom producer Anant Singh and his South Africa-based Videovision Entertainment have acquired the film rights to biography Heartbreaker: Christiaan Barnard And The First Heart Transplant. Written by author James-Brent Styan, the book was recently published to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the first human-to-human heart transplant, performed by South African surgeon Barnard.

Singh is producing the screen transfer with Brian Cox and Christian Halsey-Solomon exec producing. The story focuses on the impact of the pioneering surgery on Barnard’s personal life and South African society at large. The role of black medical staff including lab assistant Hamilton Naki and others is explored, as is the intense global rivalry that arose between other famous heart surgeons and Barnard. Today, there are about 3,500 people that have the surgery each year.

Interview on Espresso
Join me at the UCT Summer School 2020:
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