I BLEW THE WHISTLE & I PAID THE PRICE

As the former CEO of a state captured firm, Bianca Goodson thought revealing the truth was the right thing to do but it’s cost her her marriage and career

- ROBYN LUCAS

SHE had everything she’d ever wanted in life: a loving husband and daughter, a well-paying job and a comfortable home in an upmarket suburb of Johannesburg. But her white picket fence collapsed after she made the brave decision to blow the whistle on state capture.

As the former CEO of Trillian Management Consulting, Bianca Goodson played an important role in exposing how the Gupta-linked firm had enriched itself with hundreds of millions of taxpayers’ rands from dodgy contracts struck with Eskom and Transnet.

At the time she thought it was the right thing to do, little knowing it would end up costing her almost everything.

Despite being hailed a hero for going public, four years down the line Bianca (41) is still dealing with the fallout – she says it led to the end of her marriage and has made it impossible for her to get another job. She’s now having to rely on her elderly parents to keep a roof over her head.

“I didn’t realise I would become unemployable,” says Bianca, who’s in her pyjamas with a packet of cigarettes and a glass of wine beside her as she chats to YOU via video call.

She admits she still often wonders if she made the right decision.

“I didn’t anticipate this. I honestly thought it would be crazy for one or two weeks then blow over, but that hasn’t happened. Nobody saw this coming.

“Am I being delusional? Am I just stupid? Am I not brave? I can’t make sense of it,” the mom-of-one says hopelessly.