No 'lights out' for Eskom and SAA

There will never be load-shedding
again and there are no plans to sell
the national carrier, South African
Airways (SAA), despite what “other
people say”.
That was the message from
president Jacob Zuma during his
visit to Eskom and SAA last Friday.
During both visits Zuma
reiterated that he would “make
good” on the promises made
during his state of the nation
(Sona) address in February “that
government will provide support
to state-owned companies while
also implementing the reforms that
would make them more effective in
delivering on their mandates”.
Both Eskom and SAA have faced
a slew of operational challenges
over the past few months, with the
former having averted major power
outages and load shedding for nine
consecutive months. SAA has also
received a number of government
bail-outs and is currently in the
midst of a turnaround strategy.
“Government fully
appreciates the positive role and
contribution that state-owned
companies can and should play
in supporting the attainment
of the National Development
Plan objectives‚ especially in the
areas of stepping up investment‚
growing the economy‚ expanding
the skills base and creating jobs‚“
Zuma said.
CAPTION
President Jacob Zuma addresses SAA staff and management during a monitoring visit to the
airline’s headquarters in Kempton Park on Friday. SAA chairperson, Dudu Miyeni, looks on.