JOHANNESBURG – The African National Congress (ANC)’s economic transformation committee says that there will be no privatization of Eskom or the loss of jobs from government’s plans to unbundle the power utility.
The announcement by President Cyril Ramaphosa to split Eskom into three entities has raised concerns over possible job losses, with labour unions threatening to take the streets.
But during a media briefing at Luthuli House on Sunday, the ANC assured the public that the process of restructuring of the power utility would not result in privatisation, job losses or an increase in the price of electricity.
In his State of the Nation Address, President Ramaphosa announced plans to unbundle Eskom into three entities – generation, transmission and distribution.
The president said this would help stabilise Eskom’s finances by isolating costs, improving oversight and enabling the subsidiaries to raise funds independently.
The ANC’s Dakota Legoete says that this process would not compromise jobs.
“There will be no privatisation, there will be no workers who will be casualties as a result of the unbundling or whatever process Eskom goes through.”
The party says that it has taken steps to promote good governance in SOE’s.
It says that restructuring will ensure that they perform optimally and never have to depend on government bailouts.
