As our towns and cities have slowly eroded we have kept quiet, thereby giving licence for more and more erosion until we found ourselves where we are today, argues Nontobelo Hlela.
Politician must play far away from decision-making at Eskom iol.co.za - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from iol.co.za Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Graphic: Rudi Louw
In December 2001, Eskom was awarded the prestigious title of Global Power Company of the Year at the Financial Times Global Energy Awards in New York. The judges praised the parastatal’s technical excellence, maintenance, and operation while at the same time providing affordable electricity to its customers. Eskom, which generates more than half of the electricity on the African continent, has quite effectively demonstrated itself to be a leader worthy of the title – Global Power Company of the Year, the commendation read.
Twenty years later, and Eskom is a broken company. It is saddled with a debt of R411 billion. National Treasury regards it as the single biggest threat to the South African economy, constant breakdowns at its aging fleet of power stations lead to load shedding, and corruption and thievery riddles the whole of the organisation.