PHUTI MOSOMANE
THE country’s first-ever Minister of Electricity, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, has promised to hit the ground running from his first day in office in a desperate bid to deal with the worst-ever electricity crisis to hit South Africa.
Ramokgopa told reporters in Cape Town shortly after he was sworn in as the new Minister of Electricity that the mere appointment of an electricity minister will not end load-shedding.
President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed the new Minister of Electricity on Monday night.
“I want to be realistic. The mere appointment of an electricity minister will not in itself end loadshedding. It is the actions of the Minister of electricity working hand in hand with all stakeholders and going out to power stations, that will end load-shedding,” Ramokgopa said after being sworn-in as a minister by Chief Justice Raymond Zondo.
The perky, and energetic Electricity Minister told reporters that he is going to ditch his expensive suits and get to work on the ground with other engineers at the country’s power plants to obtain first-hand information of what is going on.
“This is one of the few occasions you will see me wearing a suit. I am a project manager. Project managers are on the ground. I am on the ground. I am not going to be explained a problem. I will be able to experience the problem myself. What helps me is that I am an engineer. We are trained to solve the problems. I am ready for the fight,” said Ramokgopa.
He said as an engineer, “the more technically complex a problem looks, and the more impossible it looks [to solve], the greater my appetite. This is something I am ready for.”
He revealed that he has already met with Eskom Board Chairperson Mpho Makwana and will continue meeting more key stakeholders on Thursday.
Asked on how long it would take him to end loadshedding, Ramokgopha said he will have discussions with stakeholders before making any commitments.
“We will have an engagement with multiple players. There is an Energy Action Plan which already has timelines. I will ask the question as to whether we can meet the timelines. If the answer is not, why is it that we can’t meet the timelines. If it requires us evoking the disaster management Act we will do so, and then present to the country the plan.”
“On my feet I can’t make that determination. It’s a populist stance. I know that there is an appetite to know when this Minister is going to end load shedding,” Ramokgopa said, adding that he does not have “a switch to turn on and off the lights. We are going to be honest and transparent to the South African people about our ability to address these issues.”
Ramokgopa said he is more than confident that the country will be able to resolve the loadshedding crisis.
During his busy schedule, Ramokgopa also intends meeting businessmen and farmers to work out a strategy on minimising the impact of the power blackouts.
Earlier on Tuesday, Ramaphosa officiated at the swearing-in ceremony of new ministers and Deputy Ministers in the Western Cape.
On the same day, Energy and Minerals Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe told the Africa Energy Indaba in Cape Town that there will be greater cooperation between the two ministries with the common goal being to end loadshedding.
“We’ll complement one another, and we’re keen to work with the Ministry of Electricity, but focusing on the load-shedding is quite important for us, and we’ll support that,” he said.
Ramaphosa said he would transfer certain powers to the new Electricity Minister to enable him to effectively do his job.
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