Controversial former PRASA boss resigns from Parliament

Former Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) CEO turned Umkhonto we Sizwe Party (MKP) Member of Parliament (MP), Tshepo Lucky Montana, has stepped down from his role as MP.

In a social media post on 1 December, Montana said that at the beginning of the year, he told MKP leadership that he intended to step down from the National Assembly at the end of 2025

Montana stated that on 30 August 2025, he wrote to the now-suspended MKP deputy, Dr. John Hlophe, and party Chief Whip, Colleen Makhubela, confirming the same. “Today, my resignation takes effect,” he said.

The MKP did not immediately respond to queries from Newsday. Comment will be added if received.

This comes on the back of a bitter R55-million battle with the South African Revenue Service (SARS).

In October, Montana doubled down on his claims against the country’s revenue service.

He has alleged that there is an orchestrated “political witch hunt” against him, claiming that he does not owe SARS a cent.

This comes after a rare and highly public move, where SARS disclosed detailed taxpayer information about Montana, revealing that the now-ex MP owes them R55,133,282.94.

SARS said it acted under section 67(5) of the Tax Administration Act, which permits disclosure of taxpayer information to counteract “false statements that could undermine public confidence in the tax system.”

Montana made claims in the media and via legal channels, alleging “abuse of powers,” “maladministration,” a “politically motivated witch hunt,” and that SARS had “fraudulently doctored a fake court judgment to justify a hefty tax bill.”

In October 2025, the Gauteng High Court dismissed Montana’s application for leave to appeal a prior judgment.

The matter was placed on the unopposed court roll for November 19, 2025, where SARS is seeking to have him declared insolvent.

Time at PRASA

Appointed Prasa group CEO in 2010, Montana promised to modernise South Africa’s rail network, including a multi-billion-rand tender for new locomotives and plans for a Johannesburg “centre of excellence.”

His tenure, however, was marred by controversy: the R3.5 billion CAF locomotive deal proved incompatible with local infrastructure, causing a R2.65 billion loss.

The 2015 Public Protector report Derailed detailed systemic maladministration, irregular tender awards, and conflicts of interest involving senior officials, including cases where individuals with PRASA ties secured contracts through questionable means.

Other questionable contracts, including a R100 million training deal with Prodigy Business Solutions, raised corruption concerns.

Montana also clashed with the Prasa board, allegedly orchestrating the removal of dissenting executives.

Under pressure, he announced in April 2015 he would step down in 2016, but was effectively removed earlier following the locomotive scandal.

According to reports, there was a loss of about 129 million passenger trips annually by the end of his tenure.

Journalist Pieter-Louis Myburgh’s report about the property transactions between Montana and lawyer Riaan van der Walt, showed they had a relationship with Montana and did legal work for Siyangena Technologies, which received tenders from Prasa.

The 2021 Zondo Commission on State Capture recommended that the Hawks conduct expedited criminal investigations into his alleged misconduct, including potential prosecution for Prasa’s “slide into almost total ruin.”

Montana joined former president Jacob Zuma’s MKP in late June 2024 alongside other prominent SOE figures like Brian Molefe and Tom Moyane.