Pretoria - The EFF welcomed the “long overdue” resignation of Eskom chief executive officer André de Ruyter, but insisted he should not be given a golden handshake.
Describing De Ruyter as “incompetent, arrogant, and useless”, EFF national spokesperson Sinawo Thambo said the outgoing Eskom CEO was never qualified to be appointed top dog at the beleaguered power utility.
“The EFF demands that De Ruyter resign without any negotiated settlement or handshake, and furthermore he must resign now, not in March 2023. He didn’t qualify for the position in the first place, and all the money paid to him must be considered benefits of white privilege,” Thambo said.
“We further call for the immediate resignation of Eskom COO Jan Oberholzer. We are aware that with Pravin Gordhan as Minister of Public Enterprises, there is very little hope for Eskom unless a strong, competent, and technically experienced chief executive who can refuse to be a puppet of Gordhan is appointed,” he said.
The EFF further called for the suspension of “all load shedding with immediate effect” and the restoration of electricity to all households and business premises.
“The government must take drastic and needed measures, regardless of the cost, to end electricity blackouts with immediate effect,” he said.
Following the announcement of the resignation on Wednesday, it emerged De Ruyter would stay on at the power utility until March 2023.
Eskom board chairperson, Mpho Makwana said: "Mr De Ruyter has agreed to stay for an additional period beyond the stipulated 30-days’ notice to ensure continuity while we urgently embark on a search for his successor.
“His last day at Eskom will be March 31, 2023.
"It has been an honour and privilege to serve Eskom and South Africa. I wish all the hard-working people of Eskom well," said De Ruyter.
Reacting to De Ruyter’s resignation, the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) said André de Ruyter was the worst CEO in the history of Eskom.
Numsa’s national spokesperson, Phakamile Hlubi-Majola, said De Ruyter’s resignation was long overdue.
“We are overjoyed that De Ruyter resigned, his resignation was way overdue … He is the worst CEO in the history of Eskom,” she told SABC TV news.
She said under De Ruyter, as a union, they experienced a high number of retrenchments due to persistent load shedding.
“Companies are closing down due to load shedding,” she said.
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