DEAR Editor,-
We recently learned of Eskom’s proposal to increase the price of electricity by 15 percent per year for the next three years. This is an attempt to make the public pay for their corruption and inefficiency and must be rejected out of hand.
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South Africans are already struggling with the VAT increase, relentless fuel price hikes and the spiralling cost of basic goods. People simply cannot afford a steep electricity price increase.
The terrible mismanagement and blatant corruption of Eskom during the ‘Zuma years’ sent it into a debt spiral, with costs far outstripping revenue.
Eskom is owed R13-billion by municipalities around the country. Recently, unions managed to negotiate an above-inflation wage increase and once-off bonus that will send it into even more debt.
The current board is doing its best to turn the company around and we support its efforts. However, we cannot support forcing the public to pay for their inefficiency and corruption.
In the short term, the Eskom board needs to find innovative ways to increase revenue and cut costs.
They need to cut its inflated wage bill, reclaim its municipal debts, halt illegal connections, encourage high-end industrial users back into the fold and consider options for exporting surplus electricity.
Ultimately, the only way to keep the cost of electricity down is to introduce market competition in the generation and/or transmission of electricity.
The time has come to seriously consider the restructuring and privatisation of Eskom.
The people are already battling to make ends meet. It is simply unfair to make people pay for the corruption, inefficiency and bloatedness that has come to characterise Eskom.
NATASHA MAZZONE MP
DA Shadow Minister of Public Enterprises
MARSHALLÉ FREDERIKS
National Press Officer
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