tim tebeila letter to business day

Tarnishing reputation
David Gleason’s Torque column (Saga of Sekoko and its barber shop, December 6) makes a number of wild allegations that I can only conclude are intended to tarnish my good name and reputation both as an individual and an entrepreneur.

Published:2011/12/09 07:54:53 AM

David Gleason’s Torque column (Saga of Sekoko and its barber shop, December 6) makes a number of wild allegations that I can only conclude are intended to tarnish my good name and reputation both as an individual and an entrepreneur.

The article calls into question my business practices without providing a single reason for this, and it also insinuates wrongful acts on my part but fails to substantiate what exactly I am purported to have done.

I wish to respond to the key allegations that Mr Gleason seems to believe are the pillar of his article, namely that:

- "I resigned as deputy chairman and director of Firestone , of which Sekoko happened to be the major shareholder." My resignation as a director from Firestone was not in any way related to the IDC-Sekoko transaction. I took a decision to resign and communicated my decision to the board, clearly citing a potential conflict of interest on the business transaction, because I deemed this to be in the best interest of the company (Sekoko). It is only because I believe in managing my business deals with integrity that I decided to relinquish my directorship position.


- "Then it transpired that the so-called unconditional deal he had struck with IDC had some rather vital conditions attached". This is a naive statement: all business deals have conditions. If Mr Gleason had taken the effort to contact me before finalising his article, I would have clarified that the deal is conditional.

- "It seems Eskom has not entered into a memorandum of understanding of any kind with either Sekoko or Firestone." Again the issue of the memorandum could have been clarified. As previously announced by the company, Sekoko had entered into a memorandum of understanding with Eskom on January 27, the terms of which are in the process of being revised internally and renegotiated.

- "It appears that the IDC’s ownership of a large portion of Firestone shares may be in direct contravention of the Australian Corporations Act." It is common knowledge that the IDC does not own any shares in Firestone and has not breached any Australian Corporations Act.
- "The IDC has meanwhile withdrawn its proposed funding arrangement." Contrary to Mr Gleason’s assertions, the IDC has not withdrawn the proposed funding arrangement with Sekoko.

This issue demonstrates how important it is that before an article is published, the person on the receiving end is afforded the courtesy to state their side of the story.

The article even calls my background to question as part of this orchestrated campaign to vilify and discredit me, and it’s interesting that this article is published prior to the announcement of my appointment as director of Firestone Energy .


The fact that I originate from a poor background and was a teacher cannot sustain a conclusion that negates all the hard work I have put in to be a successful entrepreneur today.

I believe that many upcoming entrepreneurs in this country look up to business people like me and this encourages them to work hard so that they can also taste success. Articles such as these play squarely into the hands of those people who believe that only a section of our community has the birth right to do business.

Tim Tebeila

Executive Chairman: Sekoko Resources