Allow De Ruyter to put out the Eskom fire

Predictably, the EFF – along with a motley crew of the disgruntled, the woke and those with chips on their shoulders – has lashed out at the appointment of a white man to head power utility Eskom.

Much of the criticism is knee-jerk racism – but there are some parts of the argument against giving the job to Andre de Ruyter, which cannot simply be dismissed out of hand.

It is true that the government did not advance the transformation project at all by not appointing a person of colour. It is also true that, under De Ruyter’s watch, the company he ran, Nampak, saw its share price drop dramatically. It is also true that Finance Minister Tito Mboweni was once chair of Nampak.

However, the reality is that, while there are definitely people of colour who could have been considered for the position, many are already in top-paying posts and reluctant to take on the poisoned chalice which is Eskom. The share price cannot be looked at simplistically as it would have been impacted by many factors outside De Ruyter’s control. As far as the Mboweni connection is concerned, many in the ANC had also been involved in business.

The issue is not about race. It is not about black people being unable to run complex organisations, as some white racists have put it. Eskom and many other state-owned enterprises have failed because of “cadre deployment” – comrades getting jobs because of their loyalty and because they can open the doors to looting.

The appointment of De Ruyter is a hopeful sign that the ANC’s wise people have realised that nepotism is unsustainable in a modern, democratic, industrialised nation.

De Ruyter must be given a chance and given our support. After all, if your house is on fire, you should not question the colour of the fireman.

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.