LETTER: Medupi part of a wider malaise

We live in a country governed by systemic ineptitude, not to mention endemic corruption. Symptomatic of this malaise is the general state of our state-owned enterprises (SOEs). A case in point is the recent explosion at Medupi power station in Limpopo, which will now pile more pressure on our already imperilled electricity generation capacity.

This comes shortly after an announcement, amid much fanfare, of Medupi being fully operational and on-stream (about 14 years late and considerably over-budget). And it follows the paralysis at our ports after a cyber breach that resulted in Transnet declaring force majeure, reflecting an event that was deemed to be “unforeseeable, external and irresistible”.

With the possible exception of the SA Forestry Company Limited, every SOE under the aegis of the public enterprises ministry is in a parlous place — variously bankrupt or hobbled by corruption and chronic mismanagement — which unacceptably burdens the fiscus and delivers a disservice to our economy.

The question is when will this government abandon its statist approach, admit failure and seek innovative solutions that involve the necessary privatisation of these SOEs in the face of patent market failure?

Ghaleb Cachalia, MP
DA shadow public enterprises minister

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