GNU must emulate Eskom in turnaround

Soon after members of the Cabinet were sworn into office, President Cyril Ramaphosa declared that he is “a very happy man”, which is quite understandable given that it had taken a whole month since election results had been declared for political parties to form a government.

Given the kind of negotiations that had just taken place leading to the formation of the government of national unity (GNU), maybe the feeling the president was experiencing was more relief than genuine happiness.

Happiness can only come if the vehicle he’s put together actually travels the journey in one piece. Breakdowns will occur along the route, guaranteed, but joy and happiness will only come if the GNU can stick together long enough to make inroads in tackling the high levels of crime, unemployment and a failing economy.

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This past Friday marked 100 days without electricity blackouts in South Africa, something that has not happened in four years.

That Eskom has reduced its reliance on open-cycle gas turbines to supplement supply during periods of heavy demand is something that South Africans must be grateful for.

But, most importantly, these are the kind of benchmarks that the GNU must be measuring itself against. Tangible and measurable results that are there for all to see.

It will bode well for the country and the president to keep on looking at Eskom as a sign of what the GNU can achieve, because it represents more than just the restoration of an uninterrupted supply of electricity.

Eskom bore the brunt of the ANC’s negligence and mismanagement over the past 30 years. The state capture years were the worst because not only was it rendered almost dysfunctional, but it was used as conduit to channel funds out of state coffers for Gupta-linked beneficiaries. Yet, here it is, showing signs of a possible turnaround.

The turnaround at Eskom might be nothing short of a miracle but it did not happen miraculously, it took very tangible steps and action by the government, the Eskom board and the Minister of Electricity and Energy Kgosientsho Ramokgopa to achieve the turnaround.

At this point, it is important to caution against unguarded praise and adulation for the utility because the turnaround is a process and pitfalls might still lie ahead.

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The take-home lesson for the GNU and the president remains a combination of political will, financial commitment and tangible planning and action that brought about the 100 days that Eskom celebrated on Friday.

Before the president announces himself a very happy man, let him and his Cabinet come forth and declare their 100-day turnaround goals for the government.

Let all the ministers stop hiding behind “it’s going to be a very tough five years” and take the people into their confidence and declare exactly what they are planning to do with this privileged power that they have been afforded.

Chances are that those who want to see the GNU fail will work towards ensuring they achieve that goal. They will tug at the ideological differences between the GNU participants.

But most importantly, they will be watching every move that leaders in the GNU make.

And that goes especially for the president. Putting together the government will probably seem like the easiest part a few months or years from now.

South Africans will not applaud simply having put together a government but they will applaud a government that works.

One that takes SA beyond just 100 days without electricity blackouts but into a growth path where Eskom functions perfectly, without expecting praise.

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