The South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) notes the recent remarks by former President Thabo Mbeki alleging that the 2007–2008 electricity crisis and the introduction of load-shedding were deliberately engineered from within Eskom through the intentional depletion of coal stocks in order to trigger emergency procurement and inflated coal contracts. These are extremely serious allegations. If true, they amount not simply to corruption or incompetence, but to deliberate economic sabotage against the people of South Africa. However, claims of this magnitude cannot rest on speeches or political interpretations. They must be supported by evidence, transparency, and prosecutions. South Africans deserve facts, not conspiracy theories.
Where is the SIU report?
Former President Mbeki claims that a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) report submitted to the Presidency in 2017 concluded that the crisis was “internally generated” because Eskom management ignored warnings about coal stocks.
If such a report exists, SAFTU demands:
• its immediate public release
• full disclosure of its findings
• the naming of all responsible individuals
• and criminal prosecutions without delay
A democracy cannot be governed through secret reports. If workers suffered because of deliberate actions, those responsible must go to jail. Two Presidents have sat on this report If this report was delivered in 2017, then it has been in the possession of:
• former President Jacob Zuma, and
• President Cyril Ramaphosa, who has governed for years and previously chaired
the Eskom crisis “war room”. Why has it not been published? Why has nobody been arrested? Why has there been no accountability?
Either the evidence has been concealed, or the claims are exaggerated. Both scenarios represent a failure of leadership. Workers do not care which president or faction is involved; accountability must apply to all. Workers and communities paid a devastating price Load-shedding was not a technical inconvenience. It was a social and economic catastrophe for the working class.
It caused:
• factory and mine closures
• collapse of smelters and heavy industry
• thousands of job losses
• destruction of SMMEs
• GDP losses estimated at around 2% annually
• electricity tariff increases exceeding 500% over 15 years
But the damage went far beyond economics. Communities were plunged into darkness and fear. Crime escalated dramatically. Already weakened, policing hollowed out by years of state capture was further paralysed during blackouts. Criminals knew the load-shedding schedules and used them to terrorise neighbourhoods.
Working-class areas experienced:
• robberies
• housebreakings
• attacks on small businesses
• gender-based violence
• and nightly insecurity
The wealthy bought generators and solar panels.
The poor sat in the dark.
Even today, while affluent areas may be spared, “load reduction” continues in townships and informal settlements. This is class inequality in electricity form. SAFTU rejects conspiracy narratives, but demands accountability. SAFTU and the broader labour movement have consistently rejected attempts to explain Eskom’s collapse through mysterious “saboteurs”. Even when similar claims were previously advanced by former Minister of Public Enterprises Alec Erwin, we warned against dramatic stories that distract from systemic failures.
The crisis at Eskom was primarily structural and political:
• years of underinvestment in generation capacity
• failure to build ahead of rising demand
• maintenance backlogs
• loss of technical skills
• corruption and state capture
• governance collapse
• and deliberate policy choices that weakened public ownership
These realities, not shadowy plots, laid the foundation for load-shedding. The privatisation agenda cannot be ignored.Load-shedding also became the perfect excuse to push privatisation. This follows what political economist Noam Chomsky has long described as a
standard neoliberal formula:
• Defund public institutions
• Allow deterioration
• Create public anger
• Present privatisation as the only solution.
Instead of rebuilding Eskom as a strong public utility, the government:
• unbundled the utility
• fragmented public generation
• expanded private producers
• and signed secretive agreements with Independent Power Producers that
guarantee private profits while the public carries the risk
Eskom was starved, weakened, declared broken, and then privatisation was sold as inevitable. Electricity is a public good, not a commodity.
SAFTU’s call
South Africa does not need conspiracy theories.
South Africa needs:
• transparency
• prosecutions
• public investment
• and a strong, unified, publicly owned Eskom
If Eskom was sabotaged, publish the report and jail those responsible. If it was mismanaged, hold leaders accountable. But do not rewrite history while continuing policies that weaken public power and enrich private interests. Workers have paid enough.
Issued on behalf of the SAFTU General Secretary Zwelinzima Vavi.
For media inquiries, contact the National Spokesperson at:
Newton Masuku
newtonm@saftu.org.za
0661682157
Media Officer
Asive Dyani
0719019564
