The Presidency has hit back against recent media headlines which quoted President Cyril Ramaphosa as saying he did not have a legal duty to provide the country with electricity.

On Tuesday, the Presidency stated that Ramaphosa’s statements made in an affidavit were misrepresented and do not diminish his commitment to end loadshedding as a matter of urgency.

Nineteen litigants, including opposition parties brought a court case against Ramaphosa in respect of the current energy crisis, for failing to uphold the Constitution by not providing electricity.

The President’s opposing statement in the affidavit, which the Presidency says has been misrepresented, relates to the constitutional powers and responsibilities of the President and other government bodies.

Media reported that in his affidavit, Ramaphosa said national government was not constitutionally required to supply electricity. That responsibility, he said, sat with municipalities, at a local level.

The statement seeks to clarify important legal issues about what is contained in and what is required by the Constitution.

The Presidency explained that the recently declared National State of Disaster will enable additional measures to be implemented to mitigate the social and economic effects of loadshedding and accelerate the measures necessary to close the shortfall in electricity.
 
“These and other measures are clearly outlined in the same affidavit from which certain media outlets have selectively and inaccurately quoted,” said the Presidency.

The Presidency noted that since taking office in 2018, Ramaphosa has undertaken “far-reaching measures to resolve an electricity crisis that stretches back more than a decade”.

Earlier this month, when delivering his State of the Nation Address, Ramaphosa said the most immediate priority of government is to restore energy security.
 
“The intense focus that is being given to resolving this crisis – and the actions that have been taken so far – clearly show that neither the President nor government has abdicated its responsibility for ending loadshedding and setting the country on a path to energy security,” the Presidency highlighted.