Eskom was an easy target for state capture and the project was effective. But President Cyril Ramaphosa says now is not the time to apportion blame. As the power utility battles to put cash in the bank, he’s told Parliament, government will be pulling out all the stops to ensure its survival. Ramaphosa was answering questions in the National Council of Provinces on Thursday.
“My own sense is if there ever was an entity of government that was completely captured it was Eskom. And it was easy to capture because they were able to see how big it is, the biggest corporation in our country generates revenue far above many other companies.
He says a lot that went on at Eskom was hidden. But a blame game won’t fix the situation. So I was the leader of state capture project? Very nice. I think the honourable member is hallucinating a bit.”
Ramaphosa says if Eskom’s liquidity is to improve, consumers must pay.“This culture that we can use as much as we want is the wrong culture. This boycott culture is over. We must pay our electricity bills just as we pay for our cellphones.”
Ramaphosa says Eskom will remain the main electricity generator in South Africa. While partnerships with the private sector are encouraged, Eskom won’t be privatised.
In other news – ANC in Tshwane wants road renamed to honour slain taxi driver
The ANC in Tshwane says it wants the City to rename a road and taxi rank in honour of slain taxi driver Jabu Baloyi.
Baloyi was shot and killed in August, allegedly by a foreign national, in Pretoria. Read more
Source: eNCA
