The president reacted to the two days of debates on SONA and defended his view by saying that the record proved him right. He emphasized his aspirations to move ahead and focus on the work that needs to be done to overcome the problem rather than harking on past failures.
He said: “Retrospectively and just dragging on the basis to say who did [what]. is not the answer. The answer is getting the work done now and moving forward.”
Ramaphosa mentioned a growing uptake of rooftop solar panels by businesses and households, saying that such development was part of an effort to address the country’s energy challenges. He cited government enabling the process through incentives and financing mechanisms.
“Businesses and households are installing rooftop solar on an unprecedented scale and this administration has unleashed this energy,” he said. “We have unleashed it, and it is gaining momentum with the support of the incentives and the financing mechanisms that were introduced by the government.”
The president’s comments came against the backdrop of continuing concerns over the security of South Africa’s electricity supply, with businesses and daily routines continuously disrupted by regular blackouts. Although opposition parties have expressed doubt on President Ramaphosa’s positivity and realism on the issue, the president insisted that he would find the right solutions to the country’s energy challenge.
Moves towards promoting renewable energy like solar power are part of the greater purpose of the government to bring down the country’s reliability on traditional fossil fuels and correct the lacuna of power shortages.
However, a few skeptics argue that the pace of the transition of conventional sources to renewable sources is too slow to bring any significant immediate relief to the national grid. This is the only way, they insist, to enable the reliable and sustained provision of power to all of South Africa.
As the debate around the country’s future energy system rumbles on, one cannot fail to note President Ramaphosa’s almost relentless optimism that load shedding can be decisively beaten: a clarion call toward advancement and invention in facing down one of the country’s greatest challenges.
