The ANC Youth League (ANCYL) on Tuesday said it would “never apologise” to Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan for positions it has taken on policy matters.
“The ANC will not be censured by anybody and it will definitely never apologise for the positions it has taken on policy questions.
“We have been very clear that we are against any form of privatisation of SOEs and all the network industries that we are seeing they want to be sold,” said the league's secretary-general, Mntuwoxolo Ngudle.
Ngudle said they noted what was happening at Eskom and Transnet, as well as the sale of SAA, and that they were against the defunding of Denel and other strategic SOEs.
“We are not going to be censured.
We are an elected structure and we are going to advance our views around the need to build the capability of a developmental state.
“One of the key levers is to ensure that the state has efficiency and capabilities to ensure it delivers on the developmental mandate,” he said.
On Monday, Gordhan demanded a public apology from ANCYL president Collen Malatji, who accused him of selling SOEs.
Gordhan lashed out at distortions about Eskom’s restructuring by those who sought to “tarnish his name” and “undermine the work of government” and his department in restructuring SOEs.
“The latest attack from Collen Malatji and from counter revolutionaries and other discredited characters, underscore the fact that the public ought to know that there are vested interests intent on crippling reform of SOEs to the detriment of millions of South Africans,” he said, adding that he would meet the Youth League shortly.
The furore came after a letter Gordhan wrote to Eskom board chairperson Mpho Makwana, approving the sale of distribution business to the newly-formed distribution company, was viewed in some quarters as the privatisation of the power utility.
Gordhan said a statement that his department issued on the restructuring of Eskom reiterated the three subsidiaries would remain owned by the state.
“The latest misinformation is further evidence that there is a concerted campaign involving people with vested interests, who only care about lining their pockets,” he said.
“The campaign of misinformation and deliberate distortions, just like many others before it, is going to fail.
“Our focus is on executing on our mandate to ensure that SOEs deliver on key national strategic objectives.
“This includes transforming and revitalising our economy against all odds,” he added.
Ngudle hit back at Gordhan. He also said the sale of Eskom transmission capability into a new state enterprise should not mean there should be a so-called equity partner, which would take over a stake at the power utility’s transmission.
“We are calling to stop it if it means privatisation.
“If it improves efficiency, if it means the delivery of energy to our industries and communities well and good, but there must be no backdoor privatisaton,” Ngudle said.
He added that more should be done to improve the performance and internal capacity of the SOEs.
Meanwhile, the public enterprises portfolio committee plans to receive a briefing from the Department of Public Enterprises on the unbundling of Eskom and other matters next month.
“Immediately we open, the minister has to take us through.
“I think it will depend on his availability,” committee chairperson Khaya Magaxa said.
He said they would have Eskom take everybody on board once the constituency period ended in August.
“We will, of course, try to prioritise things in order to get that particular information. It is not the only burning problem in Eskom,” he added.
Cape Times