Erasibo

A concerning article which appears in the www.iol.co.za written by Ntokozo Mfusi which highlights that an 18 percent electricity price hike is proposed by Eskom for the next two years. It further notes that this increase will have a follow through impact on the price of water.

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The data for that article was sourced from the National Energy Regulator of South Africa’s public hearing on electricity prices which was held in Durban on 20 November 2007, where an Umgeni Water representative reported that the proposed hike in electricity tariffs would cause subsequent rise in water prices as well. He noted that electricity is one of the primary drivers in the process of purifying water; therefore the rise in electricity prices will necessitate an increase in water prices.

While there is unlikely to be single South African citizen at this point in time who is unaware that we have a problem with electricity supply and the need to conserve energy, given the rolling black outs that have become a way of life of late. Arbitrary, blanket increases are not the solution. We need to find a way to deal with poor long term planning of resources, poor spatial planning in urban areas, wastage etc. These are planning issues that need to be affected properly with a long term view and understanding of the impact it has on all other aspects of government and public functioning. It needs to be communicated well to the public and partnered with the public to find a resolution. Crisis functioning is the reason we have a problem in the first place. Punishing citizens with price increasing merely exacerbated the problem, as citizens believe that they are being forced to compensate for inept government functions.

Electricity and water are scarce resources in South Africa and many South Africa citizens still have no access to these resources or are unable to afford them at current prices. Providing services to all citizens has been a challenge for municipalities and has been the reason a Free Basic Service (FBS) policy has been championed by government. To ensure that all citizens can have access to services, as is their constitutional right. An increase in the cost of both electricity and water, will impact hardest on the poor, who are already unable to pay for these services and will impact on the ability of government to roll out the FBS programme. It will add a further financial burden to municipalities who at present are struggling to manage their functions in a fiscally responsible way and are forced to subsidise the costs of vast numbers of their constituency instead of relying on service delivery as a municipal income. This burden on municipalities will then have to be relieved by the national fiscus.