Ramaphosa’s lie is rejected in real time

Dear Editor

There is no better illustration to sum up President Cyril Ramaphosa’s dishonest SONA speech than the immediate practical repudiation of his disingenuous lie about ending loadshedding.

In just a few minutes after he boldly claimed that ‘the end of loadshedding is within reach’, Eskom announced that the country will be placed on an indefinite stage 3 loadshedding. Before the country could properly process Ramaphosa’s lie and the sudden escalation in loadshedding, Eskom did one better and issued another advisory indicating that the country was in fact now in an indefinite stage 4 loadshedding.

This rapid turn of events confirmed what the DA has been saying all along – the ANC government has no plan to end loadshedding and Ramaphosa’s much vaunted Energy Action Plan has been a dismal failure.

Instead of being honest about the national crisis brought about by loadshedding, Ramaphosa chose to gloss over the problem and make false electioneering promises. By choosing to lie live on television about ending loadshedding, Ramaphosa showed how much he did not care that the 283 days of loadshedding in 2023 had cost the economy R1,6 trillion in lost economic activity. Last night, South Africans were provided with irrefutable evidence that the ANC is simply unable to solve the electricity crisis. Re-electing the ANC back into government will condemn South Africa to a future of darkness and more false promises.

The 17 year loadshedding crisis has stagnated our economy, driven the unemployment rate up and reduced South Africa’s attractiveness as an investment destination. This cannot be allowed to continue and the DA calls on all South Africans to rally behind the DA and rescue our country from the corrupt and clueless ANC.

Regards

Samantha Graham-Maré MP
DA Shadow Minister of Electricity