LETTER: It’s over and lights out for Eskom
Gordhan thinks that because state capture has seemingly ended it will all work out with a few new engineers running the plants
When will the government realise that it is game over for Eskom? Public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan thinks that because state capture is over (we think), it will all work out with a few new engineers to run the plants. The government got rid of those very same engineers as they did not meet affirmative action numbers. They then brought BEE into procurement, which allowed Gordhan’s predecessor, Lynne Brown, and former Eskom CEO Brian Molefe to say no company with less than 50% black ownership could get a coal contract. Did we hear either Gordhan or President Cyril Ramaphosa countermand that instruction? After all, they were in government! Suppliers have said that costs in new power stations were so inflated that they could simply not believe the prices Eskom paid for things. The management of Eskom have no experience in running a utility business and are simply passengers on this sinking ship. The government will not let them fire 12,000 extra workers and thus save R5bn a yea...
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