Former chairperson of BMC Botsile Gubago told the committee that things moved from bad to worse when De Graaff took over the reins from Jonnie Swartz. Under Swartz, Gubago said the board was allowed to provide oversight of the BMC management. He said immediately after De Graaff's appointment, reporting lines became blurred and the authority of the board chairperson was largely undermined. He said a section of the board enjoyed personal relations with the minister and easily bypassed him. One such board member was Jakobus Van der Merwe, a relative of the minister, he related.
He revealed that Koos Van Vuuren, Van der Merwe and Rowland Munger had a big influence on ministry officials, including De Graaff.Gubago said it was difficult for him to control the trio. He said the three commercial farmers did not make any significant contribution to the BMC and mostly disregarded the commission's good corporate governance strategy. Gubago said they were mostly interested in cattle pricing because they sell cattle to the BMC. "They were not necessarily on the board to protect the interests of BMC but had other vested interests," Gubago said.
