No, Eskom can’t just cut the supply of electricity to Tshwane

Please find attached an Englsih and an Afrikaans soundbite by Cilliers Brink MP.

Eskom is not permitted to cut the supply of electricity to any municipality without exhausting intergovernmental processes.

This is a lesson Eskom has already leant in court.

And so, the power utility’s continuous threats against the City of Tshwane are not only irresponsible, they are unconstitutional.

The truth is that before Eskom officials in Gauteng even touch the off switch, they have to consider Tshwane’s position.

This includes the extent to which Tshwane’s cash flow situation has been worsened by other organs of state.

Some of Tshwane’s worst paying consumers are national and provincial government departments.

Tshwane’s cashflow problems can also be traced back to the disastrous period of unlawful provincial government intervention in 2020.

The city has repeatedly committed to catching up on its arrear payments to Eskom.

It has also submitted a payment plan to Eskom which was initially well reserved by Eskom’s CEO, André de Ruyter.

Tshwane’s conduct is far more reasonable and helpful than most of Eskom’s debtors.

And yet the power utility has reserved its worst public attacks and threats for Tshwane.

It would seem that Eskom is playing a political game with Tshwane, a city whose residents have repeatedly rejected the ANC.

The DA will be asking detailed questions from the Minister of Public Enterprises about how Eskom’s treatment of Tshwane squares with its approach to other municipalities.

Issued by Cilliers Brink, DA Shadow Minister of Cooperative Governance & Traditional Affairs, 1 September 2022