Political support critical to Eskom success – De Ruyter
Outgoing Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter says political support is critical to the utility’s success.
De Ruyter confirmed he will remain at the helm of the power utility until March next year, to ensure a smooth handover to his successor.
News of his resignation broke on Wednesday, while the country has been downgraded to stage 4 rolling power cuts following a week of stage 5 load shedding.
At a briefing on Thursday, De Ruyter said he was disappointed to be leaving the troubled state-owned entity without achieving all of his objectives.
De Ruyter acknowledged the difficulties at Eskom, which included the operational and financial challenges, crime, and corruption, as well as the unbundling of the entity.
He added that his position required support from the broader political community and alluded to the fact that it was lacking.
This follows utterances by Minerals and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe, who said that by allowing load shedding to continue Eskom was “actively agitating for the overthrow of the state”.
“I am in a position where I am also dependent on the broader political economy and that support is critical to enabling the support of Eskom going forward. Given the recent media reports, I am currently not in a position where I do not regard that position as not being tenable, and I have accordingly decided to step back to afford the shareholder and the board the opportunity to appoint a candidate to the position of GCEO who may better suited…for the strategic and operational objectives at hand,” De Ruyter said.
ALSO READ: Govt must stay away from Eskom CEO appointment – expert
Responding to a question about whether Eskom board chairperson Mpho Makwana believed De Ruyter is a traitor, Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan said it was unfair to blame the outgoing CEO for the entity’s woes.
“It is absolutely unfair and uncalled for to use that kind of language for somebody who tried their best to get Eskom out of the mess that they were in onto a different kind of platform. The more knowledgeable people know that mess didn’t start in 2019, 2009, 2010, 2011, or 2012. There is a long list of people that must be held responsible for decisions that they didn’t make the right way.”
