Cyril Ramaphosa Defends Himself Against Outcry Over Claims of Not Being Legally Obliged to Provide Electricity

• President Cyril Ramaphosa has clapped back at the backlash over a statement he made in an answering affidavit
• Ramaphosa claims he was misinterpreted when he said the Presidency does not have a responsibility to provide SA with electricity
• According to the Presidency, Ramaphosa has proven that he is committed to ending SA's energy crisis

PRETORIA - President Cyril Ramaphosa claims that statements he made about having no legal obligation to provide electricity were taken out of context.

The Presidency released a statement on Tuesday, 28 February, claiming the utterance was taken from an answering affidavit in a court case brought by the United Democratic Front and other over SA's electricity crisis.

Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said the statement sought to clarify the powers and responsibilities of the president and the three spheres of the government as entrenched by the South African constitution.

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Magwenya also reaffirmed President Ramaphosa's commitment to ending the nation's energy crisis, claiming the president has implemented multiple measures to end the electricity crisis, TimesLIVE reported.

The Presidency spokesperson added that these measures were outlined in the affidavit and slammed media outlets for selectively and inaccurately quoting Ramaphosa.

Magwenya added that the intense focus on resolving the crisis proves that the government and President Ramaphosa have not abdicated their responsibility for finding solutions to loadshedding.

South Africans divided over President Ramaphosa's claims that he was misinterpreted

While some South Africans agree that the affidavit was taken out of context, others don't believe the president was misinterpreted.

Here are some comments:

@MokemanePeter agreed:

"The media, UDM and EFF fooled citizens."

@MpotiDz added:

"You guys are the ones who report nonsense every time. That affidavit was clear from the get-go."

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@GenduToit rebutted:

"Ja, their comments are always 'taken out of context' when the heat comes down on them."

@warrenfer1 said:

"Eskom is a state-owned enterprise numpty... Municipalities don't have their own power stations."

@Ms_Phiri claimed:

"Misrepresented or not, the national government informs the municipalities' capacity to deliver the service."

@niksanerd added:

"It was your words though."

@PositivelyNot accused:

"@CyrilRamaphosahas done NOTHING to mitigate loadshedding! And he's allowed Mantashe and Gordhan to block renewables and bankrupt Eskom!"

Presidency Minister Mondli Gungubele believes Mzansi’s energy crisis will be over in 12 months, sparking anger

Earlier, Briefly News reported that Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele believes that South Africa’s energy crisis may soon be a thing of the past.

He commented on President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to declare a state of disaster and create a minister of electricity position. The steps were taken to remedy the country’s ongoing electricity woes.

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Gungubele took to Twitter to share his positive outlook on the country’s future and sparked anger, with many calling him out for not being truthful.

Source: Briefly News