Inkatha Freedom Party Statement By:
MR NAREND SINGH MP
IFP FINANCE SPOKESPERSON

12 December 2007

The IFP welcomes the apology made by President Thabo Mbeki in Bloemfontein on Tuesday night that Eskom was right and government was wrong.

President Mbeki acknowledged that government had been asked earlier to invest more in electricity to keep up with the country's economic growth, but failed to do so. 

Although the IFP welcomes the apology it doesn't solve the current electricity crisis we are facing in South Africa. President Mbeki's admission of guilt also shows poor planning from government in this regard. 

Eskom's load shedding is causing severe financial losses to companies while small business owners are warning that the frequent power cuts are killing their businesses. Frequent load-shedding also negatively impacts on South Africa's economy.

In light of the prospect of consumers paying more for electricity, the IFP would like to call on the Minister of Finance to urgently allocate more funds to assist Eskom financially with their expansion programme. 

The IFP is adamant that it is government's responsibility to assist Eskom and not the South African consumer who already faces severe financial strain following eight interest rate hikes in 18 months, coupled with high CPIX inflation and rocketing food prices.  

For further information contact: 
Mr Narend Singh, 083 788 5954
Liezl van der Merwe, 083 611 7470