Lebogang Seale
ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe says the crisis afflicting Eskom is not a catastrophe but “a positive crisis”.
He said this was because many more people had now been connected to the power grid than previously, unlike during successive white regimes over 100 years.
“The crisis at Eskom is a positive crisis, that’s my view. In 100 years, various white regimes connected 5 million households. Over 20 years, we (ANC-led government) connected 7 million households,” Mantashe said yesterday at a post-ANC NEC meeting in Johannesburg.
He reiterated that part of the Eskom crisis was caused by the fact that the economy continued to grow, “however moderately”.
“That in itself puts pressure on the (power) generation capacity. The solution for that crisis is not about instant solutions that we must manufacture to appease society,” he said, in a veiled attack on the DA for demanding the unbundling of Eskom.
“So to us we have a crisis, but we have a positive crisis. It’s not a catastrophe… You must be able to say we can only resolve that problem by accelerating the grid problem.
“Take Medupi, commission Kusile (and) Ingula power stations. If we commission (these power stations), half of the problem will be resolved.”
He said there was already a need for South Africa to build additional energy generation capacity.
Mantashe also denied that the crisis gripping state-owned enterprises and law enforcement agencies was a result of the ANC’s policy of cadre deployment.
He said the ANC did not discuss the “operations” of these institutions.
“Whether it is the NPA, whether it is the heads of the various institutions, whether it is the operational issues of Eskom, we don’t do that. If we do that, I can tell you that we will have more questions to answer (including) how competent (we are) to run a power utility, and we will be found wanting.”
Mantashe said, however, that what the ANC had deliberated on was to request members to improve the performances of the respective entities they were deployed in so that they did not reflect badly on the party.
“The fights in this SABC board, disagreements with the interpretation of the company acts, if you have to deal with that issue, please accelerate solutions regarding that issue. That’s where the NEC stops.”