EFF supports Eskom on Exxaro 51% black ownership

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has come out to support Eskom in its policy that requires its suppliers to be at least 51% black owned.

The power utility is reported to have been “shown a finger” by its coal supplier Exxaro when asked to comply with the policy.

Eskom’s acting CEO Koko Matshela took to social media to say that Exxaro decided “to show @Eskom_SA a finger instead of radically transforming and has no decency to even engage on this matter”.

Business Day reported the Exxaro Resources shareholders gave a go-ahead for the first step in a transaction that will see its black ownership slip to 30% from above 50%. This meant the coal supplier could no longer meet the standard as per Eskom policy requirements.

The party says it believes the policy should apply to all Eskom suppliers, to ensure that the power utility’s suppliers are 50% owned by black South Africans. The party’s spokesperson MP Mbuyiseni Ndlozi further said the EFF would table a special draft resolution in Parliament, “which will result in a legislative requirement for all State and State Owned Companies’ suppliers to have 51% black ownership”.

“The EFF support Eskom on Exxaro 51% black ownership. We believe Eskom 51% black ownership policy must be strictly applicable to all Eskom suppliers, with the aim of making sure that all ESKOM Suppliers are minimum owned 50% by indigenous black South Africans.

“As the EFF we believe that 51% black ownership must be awarded to workers and not BEE schemes that benefit few individuals. BEE has for many years been used as a vehicle to empower few black individuals who are in actual fact, gatekeepers of white monopoly capital. BEE Ownership must never mean empowerment of few black individuals.

“We encourage Eskom to instruct Exxaro and all its other suppliers to have 51% black ownership through workers ownership schemes, and must never retreat on the demand that Exxaro must be empowered at minimum of 51%. This should be so because in anyway, the Mines which Exxaro mines coal from are assets that are largely owned by ESKOM.

“The EFF strongly believes that all other state-owned companies must adopt procurement policies that instruct their suppliers to also have 51% black ownership through workers ownership schemes. This way, many workers will begin to benefit from the companies they work for. This is consistent with the demands the Economic Freedom March.

“The EFF will further table a special draft resolution in Parliament, which will results in a legislative requirement for all State and State Owned Companies’ suppliers to have 51% black ownership, which should primarily be through workers ownership schemes.”