EFF calls on Cyril Ramaphosa to remove Pravin Gordhan, dissolve Eskom board and fire the incompetent CEO and COO
10 November 2021
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) calls for the immediate removal of the unethical and incompetent Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan for failing to provide political leadership to stabilise Eskom and ensure a dependable electricity supply. The EFF further calls on the dissolution of Eskom Board for their failure to provide strategic guidance to lead Eskom management and the immediate firing of Eskom CEO and COO for blatant incompetence.
Gordhan has spent all his time as the Minister of Public Enterprises colluding with capital to bring chaos to state-owned enterprises with the sole purpose to collapse them so that they can be sold to his handlers for a penny.
Under Gordhan political leadership, SOEs' financial and management crises are deepening without a practical and implementable plan to rescue them. These shenanigans started with the complete collapse of SAA, and the same is being done to Eskom, Denel and Transnet as buyers are lining up to pick South Africa's sovereign assets for almost nothing compared to their development mandate and potential balance sheet and good will. The plan is to deprive the state of all strategic assets that will put current and future governments in the driving seat of strategic sectors of the economy to implement redistributive policies that will address poverty, inequality, and unemployment.
The current Board and the overrated management of Eskom was employed with much fanfare and commitments that they will rebuild Eskom into a sustainable energy utility at the forefront of reliable, clean energy. Since their appointment, they have prioritised the interests of Independent Power Producers (IPPs), who are a direct competition of Eskom. The CEO of
Eskom has gone as far as speaking publicly that Eskom must roll back its capacity, and the private sector must take centre stage in generation of electricity. The current Eskom Board and management lack the necessary competence and capacity to manage such complex systems, as they have demonstrated time and again by their failure to stabilise energy supply.
Gordhan continued presence in the Executive of the country represents the arrogance and disregard at the highest office of the plight of millions of businesses that are closing down due to unreliable supply of energy and many young people who cannot find work. The EFF maintains that De Ruyter's continued unfettered powers are part of a racist project led by Gordhan to collapse Eskom to rationalise privatisation of South Africa's most important strategic assets to control future political dynamics through undemocratic means.
The EFF is vindicated because it correctly called De Ruyter's appointment irrational and shameful. After all, his performance as CEO of the company that packages milk and beverages showed he is not qualified to manage complex systems as it was mired by abnormal losses of revenue, profits and collapse of the share price.
His refusal to voluntarily resign shows the level of white arrogance even in the face of dismal failure. His arrogance is emboldened by sheepish Board Executives that defend even the most indefensible as long as it has the mainstream media chorus singing for them. They must all go now!
Issued by Leigh-Ann Mathys, Elections Spokesperson, EFF, 10 November 2021
