Cyril Ramaphosa Imbues Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa With Powers to Tackle Loadshedding Crisis

• Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa finally has the powers needed for him to do his job
• President Cyril Ramaphosa signed a proclamation transferring certain powers from Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe to Ramokgopa
• Ramokgopa will now be able to procure more generation capacity to increase electricity supply, in addition to other things

PRETORIA - Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has a new lease on his position as South Africa's Minister of Electricity.

This comes after President Cyril Ramaphosa finally gave Ramokgopa his official electricity minister power, which will help him tackle SA's protracted loadshedding crisis.

Presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya announced in a press release that Ramaphosa sighed a proclamation that transferred certain powers and functions in Section 34 of the Electricity Regulation Act to Ramokgopa.

Cyril Ramaphosa tranferes powers from Gwede Mantashe to Kgosientsho Ramokgopa

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Imbuing the electricity minister with the new powers didn't come without its hurdles, as it involved stripping specific power from Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe and transferring them to Ramokgopa, TimesLIVE reported.

Ramokgopa's new powers include the ability to procure new energy generation capacity to improve electricity supply and determine the types of energy sources from which electricity can be generated.

Magwena added that Ramogkopa will work with Eskom's board and management to find solutions to the electricity crisis and ensure Ramaphosa's energy action plan is implemented without delay

South Africans speculate about what Ramokgopa's new power means for SA

Below are some comments:

@tedbotha said:

"Pulling the plug on Gwede. Classic!"

@Kwenaldo asked:

"Will load shedding end now?"

@Ntsuku7 demanded:

"Now he must reshuffle Uncle Gwede."

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@MthabineJustice questioned:

"Will that speed up the completion of Kusile?"

Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa disputes Fikile Mbalula’s claim loadshedding will end by December

In another story, Briefly News reported that there seems to be no consensus between the African National Congress (ANC) and the government about when loadshedding will actually end.

This comes after Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa reiterated that the energy crisis won't end before the end of the year, despite what Fikile Mbalula claimed.

Speaking on eNCA, the ANC secretary-general confidently said that given the work the government and ministers have put into solving the electricity crisis, loadshedding would be a thing of the past by the end of 2023.

Source: Briefly News