ANC admits electricity state of disaster failed with abandonment of regulations
5 April 2023
ActionSA welcomes the South African government’s termination of the state of disaster to address the country’s electricity crisis less than two months after they were introduced by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The termination shows that the ANC-led government admits that the state of disaster was never going to be able to solve the country’s ongoing electricity crises, and was not going to survive the legal challenges brought about by the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA).
Furthermore, the termination vindicates ActionSA’s long-held view that the state of disaster, and appointment of an Electricity Minister, was a cosmetic measure by the ANC and President Ramaphosa to appear as if the state was addressing the electricity crisis - but it was never going to resolve the crisis.
The reality is that two months since the state of disaster was introduced, the electricity situation has not changed with load shedding stages 4 or higher being a daily occurrence - and set to increase as the country enters the cold winter period. The government should account for the actions taken under the state of disaster regulations to ensure abuse did not occur, or that they had an adverse impact.
ActionSA furthermore welcomes Finance Minister, Enoch Godongwana’s decision to withdraw his controversial exemption for Eskom which would’ve allowed the utility not to declare irregular and fruitless expenditure - thereby making it easier for it to hide corruption.
The ANC have shown time and time again that it is unable to resolve the country’s electricity disaster which it has caused, and therefore has to resort to hiding the true extent of corruption at Eskom or implementing cosmetic measures such as a state of disaster or appointing an Electricity Minister.
The only way to resolve the electricity disaster is by allowing private companies to generate electricity in an open market, adopting renewable energy countrywide, investing in our transmission network and allowing individuals to become players in the electricity market themselves through generation.
We alongside others specifically launched legal action to force the government to come up with a concrete plan to address the ongoing crises - and to protect ordinary South Africans. The case will become particularly important with the termination of the state of disaster regulations.
Our court action seeks to declare the ANC-led government’s response to load shedding unconstitutional and seeks to exempt certain important sectors of society, such as healthcare facilities, police stations and schools from load shedding.
ActionSA, a party that values ethical leadership and rule of law, will continue to monitor the situation to ensure that the country’s electricity disaster is resolved. South Africans have been let down by the ANC and President Ramaphosa for too long.
Issued by Herman Mashaba, ActionSA President, 5 April 2023
