Possible solutions for resolving load-shedding tabled
“Our economy has lost hundreds of billions of rands and countless small businesses have shut their doors because of load-shedding."
The Multi-Party Charter for South Africa met at the Kelvin Power Station on February 28 to discuss South Africa’s electricity crisis and share their possible solutions.
The charter consists of opposition parties that came together to form the Multi-Party Charter for South Africa, which they describe as a viable pathway to a new national government to rescue South Africa in 2024.
The charter’s convention saw the signing of a pre-election agreement between seven opposition parties at first, but that number is growing.
Vice President of the United Independent Movement, Fatima Abdool, was the program director on the day.
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“We need to end load-shedding and achieve energy security for South Africa. We make it clear to voters that our approach will deliver a reliable cost-efficient energy supply system that South Africa urgently needs,” she said.
Additionally, she stated that each party contesting in this year’s elections will do so as an autonomous party, which means there will be no Multi-Party Charter for South Africa on the ballot paper.
Velenkosini Hlabisa, the leader of IFP, took to the podium and expressed his disappointment that this year’s first-time voters do not know life without load-shedding.
“Our economy has lost hundreds of billions of rands and countless small businesses have shut their doors because of load-shedding,”
Additionally, he stated load-shedding is devastating South Africa’s economy and negatively impacting economic growth by as much as 3.2%.
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“The notion of rolling blackouts that have been reduced in South Africa thanks to the intervention of the government must be rejected with contempt. In 2023, South Africans experienced 332 days of rolling blackouts.
DA leader John Steenhuisen spoke about the possible solution for Eskom.
“Eskom and other energy leadership boards should be appointed on merit.
“We need to urgently eliminate political interference in the appointments of the boards and the management of Eskom.
“Therefore, we will decisively end cadre deployment and replace those not hired on merit with experts who are able and committed to fixing Eskom,” he said.
“Not only will power stations begin to operate more efficiently, but we will also have cleaner and more accountable procurement policies implemented, and it will go a long way to eradicate corruption in the energy sector.”
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Leader of ActionSA, Herman Mashaba, was next to step up to the podium.
“To enable an open energy market, The Multi-Party Charter aims to pass the electricity regulation amendment bill through parliament to clarify how the future electricity market will operate legally.
“This bill will assist in establishing a competitive electricity supply where multiple electricity suppliers compete on an open platform,” he said.
He added that the Multi-Party Charter was committed to easing energy regulations and to the reduction of red tape in particular.
“This is to allow communities to easily find ways and means to produce their own energy without unnecessary regulations while keeping safety regulations in place,” he said.
