Electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has defended his place in the cabinet, saying he is not a junior or ornamental minister.
Speaking in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) on Tuesday, Ramokgopa said he was more than capable of serving as minister and was not there for show.
“I am not a junior minister. There is nothing in the constitution that attaches hierarchy to ministers. My presence is not ornamental.
“I bring a significant amount of technical skills in addition to my political prowess,” he said.
The minister's role and effectiveness has come under the spotlight in recent weeks amid reports his powers have still not yet been spelt out.
Ramokgopa's position was announced three months ago, but Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said last week President Cyril Ramaphosa would meet other ministers to decide on the extent of the electricity minister's powers, including his function over national power utility Eskom.
Among his first tasks as minister was to visit and assess power stations around the country and reporting on the government's plan to stabilise the grid.
He told the NCOP the country is unlikely to face a complete collapse of the grid.
“There is what you call a reserve margin of 2,200MW that is kept at every given time by the system operator in Gauteng. We are unlikely to have a grid collapse [or] blackout, because of that 2,200MW reserve margin,” BusinessLIVE quoted the minister as saying.
TimesLIVE
Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times. Just R20 for the first month.
Kgosientsho Ramokgopa: I'm not an ornamental minister
Image: Freddy Mavunda
Electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has defended his place in the cabinet, saying he is not a junior or ornamental minister.
Speaking in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) on Tuesday, Ramokgopa said he was more than capable of serving as minister and was not there for show.
“I am not a junior minister. There is nothing in the constitution that attaches hierarchy to ministers. My presence is not ornamental.
“I bring a significant amount of technical skills in addition to my political prowess,” he said.
The minister's role and effectiveness has come under the spotlight in recent weeks amid reports his powers have still not yet been spelt out.
Ramokgopa's position was announced three months ago, but Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said last week President Cyril Ramaphosa would meet other ministers to decide on the extent of the electricity minister's powers, including his function over national power utility Eskom.
Among his first tasks as minister was to visit and assess power stations around the country and reporting on the government's plan to stabilise the grid.
He told the NCOP the country is unlikely to face a complete collapse of the grid.
“There is what you call a reserve margin of 2,200MW that is kept at every given time by the system operator in Gauteng. We are unlikely to have a grid collapse [or] blackout, because of that 2,200MW reserve margin,” BusinessLIVE quoted the minister as saying.
TimesLIVE
Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times. Just R20 for the first month.
READ MORE:
Cyril still to decide on electricity minister's powers
Eskom to burn R30bn of diesel as it tries to deal with load-shedding
ANC rejects DA calls for ad hoc committee on electricity ministry
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Most read
Latest Videos