Pretoria - Under Dr Kgosientso “Sputla” Ramokgopa, the new electricity ministry will lead the country out of the darkness.
So says Blessing Manale, who was mayoral spokesperson for the City of Tshwane when Ramokgopa was its mayor.
President Cyril Ramaphosa, despite announcing Ramokgopa’s appointment on Monday, has yet to disclose the budget and staffing requirements for the new ministry, among other things.
However, Manale is confident that Ramokgopa is just what the country needs. The head of communications and social engagement for the Presidential Climate Commission said: “He is dedicated, has both the academic and technical skills. He is not worn down by the problem of the energy crisis, and he fully understands what the perpetuation of the crisis will do to our economy and our state of wellness.”
Ramokgopa is also a former Tshwane ANC regional chairperson, Gauteng MEC and was until now the head of the Investment and Infrastructure Office in the Presidency.
Manale said Ramokgopa was innovative, a hard worker and peace-builder. “He is down to earth. I believe in him. I believe that when he is done with this mission, we will call him Minister of Happiness.”
Manale said his greatest bequest to the people of Tshwane was growth, particularly in the eastern parts of the metro. He said the then mayor transformed Tshwane from just a political capital to an economic hub and a space for all of society. “He tried to unite the city so that it could claim its space as ‘The Only Capital’. He gave hope to our citizens and amalgamated, in real terms, a city in three provinces.”
Manale was referring to the three municipalities that were disestablished to form the City of Tshwane, the third largest metro in the world geographically, on the date of the 2011 local government election.
Asked if he believed Ramokgopa would lead South Africa out of the load shedding crisis, Manale said: “I think he will do his best and he will lead with the country’s interests at heart.
“We will ultimately come out of load shedding. All he needs to do is to appreciate the urgency and tell it like it is.”
To his former boss, Manale said: “Amid the pressure, he must remember that his job is about the future. He owes his dedication to posterity.”
Former Tshwane Economic Development MMC Subesh Pillay said Ramokgopa had proven to be an astute, capable and credible leader.
“During his tenure as executive mayor of Tshwane, the City stood among the leading cities in many respects,” he said.
“In his short stint as MEC in Gauteng, he again demonstrated his immense skills and competencies. He has for the past three years been working in the Presidency co-ordinating the national effort to stimulate critical investments to grow our economy.
“Again, he has excelled in this task. I’m glad that the president has recognised his strengths and competencies to address the immediate challenges of energy security.”
Pillay said it was naive to think that one person could single-handedly address the complexities of the power crisis.
“However, I do believe Dr Ramokgopa has the technical, administrative and political capabilities as well as the critical ability to surround himself with experts and action-orientated people to address load shedding.”
He added: “As an engineer, his ability to diagnose root causes to problems and then apply appropriate solutions will be critical in the work that lies ahead.”
Pillay referred to the many successes in Tshwane that were enjoyed under Ramokgopa. These include being a pioneer in the provision of free wi-fi and the adoption of climate-resilient planning, and clean townships from Winterveldt to Waterkloof.
In naming Ramokgopa as the country’s inaugural minister to the portfolio on Monday night, Ramaphosa said the primary task of the new minister would be to significantly reduce the severity and frequency of load shedding as a matter of urgency.
“To effectively oversee the electricity crisis response, the appointed minister will have political responsibility, authority and control over all critical aspects of the Energy Action Plan,” he said.
“This will help to deal with the challenge of fragmentation of responsibility across various departments and ministers which, while appropriate under normal circumstances, is not conducive to a crisis response.”
He said the minister would be expected to facilitate the co-ordination of the numerous departments and entities involved in the crisis response, work with the Eskom leadership to turn around the performance of existing power stations, and accelerate the procurement of new generation capacity.
“To enable the minister to do this work, I will, in terms of section 97 of the Constitution, transfer to them certain powers and functions contained in relevant legislation,” he stated.
He said the minister would remain in office only for as long as it was necessary to resolve the electricity crisis.
Ramokgopa could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Pretoria News