Ramaphosa's call to clean out the rot at Eskom cautiously welcomed as DA-led WC Government makes energy inroads

24 October 2022

The DA in the Western Cape cautiously welcomes the steps outlined during the President’s announcement on the implementation of the Commission of Enquiry into State Capture’s recommendations.

This year has been the country’s most intensive year of rolling blackouts, clearly showing that the rot that has grown throughout Eskom through years of mismanagement and corruption has not been fully purged.

Despite the challenges faced by Eskom, the DA-led Western Cape Government is working tirelessly to enable municipalities to procure their own electricity from IPPs and through small-scale embedded generation (SSEG) with the Municipal Energy Resilience Initiative.

During last week’s Standing Committee, the Department of Economic Development and Tourism’s 2021/22 annual report revealed that 20 municipalities in the province now allow businesses and households to be compensated for feeding their excess electricity back into the grid.

Our State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) in general, and Eskom in particular, have been hollowed out from years of looting. Cadre deployment is one of the main causes.

Our SMMEs in the Western Cape bear the brunt of the economic effects of blackouts. The Reserve Bank has already revised its 4th quarter GDP forecast downwards to a paltry 0.3% growth.

I am concerned that there is seemingly a lack of progress made on the commitments made by the President in his State of the Nation Address and 25 July press conference. That is why the DA has submitted questions, through the National Council of Provinces, on the progress made to date.

We need to see innovation at the national level, where much more resources are available to address the electricity crisis. The Western Cape Government is doing the most it can on a shoestring budget, while our SOEs continue to fail despite massive bailouts. It is time to clear out the rot at Eskom and other SOEs for our economy to recover and grow.

Issued by Cayla Murray, DA Western Cape Spokesperson on Finance, Economic Opportunities and Tourism, 24 October 2022