news analysis
- On February 9, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the electricity supply in South Africa is considered a national disaster.
- That gives your executive, through the co-op government minister, the power to do pretty much anything they deem necessary to alleviate and remedy.
- This is the complete list of what the government has done with that power.
- For more stories, visit www.BusinessInsider.co.za.
On February 9, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced in his state of the nation address that his government had declared the landslide a national disaster.
“The energy crisis is an existential threat to our economy and social fabric,” Ramaphosa said.
His minister for cooperative governance and traditional affairs, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, was equally dramatic in formally carrying out that disaster declaration, saying South Africa faced the risk of a “total blackout.”
Given the risk, Dlamini Zuma said, it may have to issue instructions and regulations on a wide range of topics. He used the exact legal language that underpinned the Covid-19 curfew and other restrictions.
See also | After 8 years of vowing to end load shedding, Ramaphosa has now put NDZ in charge, with Covid-19 level powers
“Extraordinary circumstances call for extraordinary measures,” Ramaphosa told the country. “We must spare no effort, and we must allow no delay, in implementing these measures.”
We have followed up on the measures taken to date.
Here’s a comprehensive list of everything substantial the government has done with its state of disaster emergency powers to resolve the power crisis so far.
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(This is a developing story. Check back for updates.)
