Hon Speaker, this morning Eskom admitted to a national power emergency following heavy rains that have left coal stockpiles wet, and it has to implement a schedule for blackouts for the first time since 2008.
Load shedding will have a major impact on our economy and will result in job losses. Job creation and job retention go hand in hand with investment in our economy, which is only possible if we can ensure, and produce, a secure and sustainable electricity supply. This is a national crisis.
South Africans deserve answers as to why we are again at this point. It is unacceptable that six years after the last energy crisis, Eskom has still not managed to adequately increase its capacity to deal with such challenges.
At the heart of the problem are construction delays at the Medupi Power Station and the ANC-linked Hitachi Africa. The blame for this must be placed at the door of President Zuma's ANC. The ANC has placed personal gains over public service delivery and has failed to ensure competition in the energy market by constantly blocking the important Independent System and Market Operator Bill.
It is unacceptable that under Jacob Zuma's presidency, South Africa has returned to the same electricity crisis it was in six years ago. [Applause.]