The Electricity Crisis Let those who can, fix it - it is now up to us!

The Electricity Crisis
Let those who can, fix it – it is now up to us!

By Gerhard Papenfus

For a layman, the latest update by the National Energy Crisis Committee (Necom) on Government’s Energy Action Plan, indicates some movement in the right direction. However, for South Africans who feel the effect of being denied electricity, very little has changed.  

Over the weekend Eskom announced “permanent loadshedding for the next two years”. South Africans cannot afford this. Time has run out. Even today, crops are ruined, livestock dies, businesses close and individuals lose their jobs as a result of outrageous electricity interruptions. The danger of economic instability increases by the day.

South Africans remain sceptic, and rightfully so, about Government’s ability to successfully implement any interventions, let alone in the Eskom environment. To trust them unconditionally, or even at all, to fix this, after they have failed us in each and every respect over the last decades, will simply be naive. Can it be expected of South Africans to forget their multiple empty promises?

For Government, who must accept full responsibility for this electricity predicament, to successfully implement any measures aimed at arresting our electricity crisis, they will have to illustrate a drastic change in ‘heart’, in approach and in performance:

– For one, they will have to prove that they are prepared to turn away from the ideological bondage which keeps them from bringing about any meaningful change. Will they be able to untie the hands of the ‘real’ private sector to do what only the ‘real’ private sector can do?

– Even to the extent that they allow the private sector to make a contribution, they will have to illustrate that they will desist from, through the mechanisms at their disposal, to manipulate matters in such a way that only the new elite qualifies to participate in this ‘project’ – because if they don’t, both execution and outcome will be compromised.

– The current political leadership have proved themselves to be without integrity and courage. Since they are all still in their positions of power, they need to tell us where the capacity will come from to root out the criminal element which is holding Eskom, and South Africa, hostage. The sad reality is that the current dysfunctional, unproductive, fraudulent and corruption ridden dispensation, is a lucrative enterprise for many individuals in powerful positions, and they will not relinquish it easily.

– They must indicate how they are going to deal with municipalities who sustain themselves, not through efficient service delivery, but through hefty levies for their role of facilitating the relationship between Eskom and the consumer. Elected officials and bureaucrats at municipalities are often hell bent in protecting this dispensation with all kinds of disruptive measures.

– Since Government’s style of ‘transformation’, exacerbated by cadre deployment and nepotism, has hollowed out the state’s capacity, and that of Eskom, to perform this task set before them, the question is: even if they are sincere in their desire to turn around the current downward spiral, do they have the resources to tackle this daunting project? Therefore, unless they illustrate drastic movement in restoring the capabilities of the state, we will remain sceptic about their abilities to make a substantial difference.

Are they playing for time, once again, or are they sincere? Only their actions will convince us.

So, where does this leave us? We have no option but to give Government another chance, and to the extent that they try, to give them our full co-operation. However, of extreme importance is civil society’s role in monitoring progress and providing constructive input, including harsh criticism when necessary.

However, merely waiting for them to sort out this crisis, will be a grave mistake. Even if Government performs surprisingly well in executing their part of this ‘project’, the role of the private sector is paramount in providing the electricity capacity that South Africa needs. Each one has to contribute by playing their part in finding a solution: first of all, by refusing to give up, to keep making plans, to make a difference in our area of influence, to put in place mechanisms to help ourselves and others. This is the opportunity to bring forth the best in all of us.

The private sector has immense capacity to sort out this mess. It is the role of Government to remove all hurdles in order for the private sector to utilise this capacity to the benefit of all South Africans. Perhaps this is the hardest thing for Government to do, but we are at a point where they have no choice.

Gerhard Papenfus is the Chief Executive of the National Employers’ Association of South Africa (NEASA).

For more information:
NEASA Media Department
media@neasa.co.za