NUM again rejects Eskom’s unbundling, says privatisation will lead to unaffordable energy for the poor
Trade union the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) has again stated that it rejects the unbundling of State-owned Eskom in any form.
It says the policy of separating Eskom into various entities, namely generation, transmission and distribution, is a neo-liberal project designed to dismantle a vital State asset and facilitate the wholesale privatisation of South Africa’s energy sector.
The union says energy is a public good, and not a commodity, stating that energy is an essential public service that must remain firmly in the hands of the State.
The liberalisation of the sector, which has proven disastrous in several other countries, will inevitably lead to energy being inaccessible and unaffordable for the poor and working class of South Africa, it avers.
Further, Eskom has conceded that it will be significantly reduced in scale owing to the introduction of private players.
This reduction in customer base, sales, revenue and profit will lead to Eskom's strategic decline, threaten its role as a key economic pillar and jeopardise thousands of jobs, the NUM says.
“The inevitable consequence of this unbundling and liberalisation is the calculated replacement of Eskom by profit-driven private entities.
“We cannot allow the foundation of our national economy to be handed over to those whose primary motive is not public service, but shareholder return,” the union says.
The South African economy relies on a single, functioning and publicly-owned Eskom and the current trajectory risks the future of energy security and social equity in the country, the union argues.
The NUM calls on government to immediately halt the unbundling process and commit to strengthening Eskom as a unified, State-owned entity, it says.
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