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Following hot on the heels of news that Eskom's executives received pay increases of 109% on average, the Congress of the People is disturbed by the price increases in services that will hit consumers from Friday. There is no doubt that the anger of consumers will be justifiably aimed at government, who will then pass the buck to the municipities, but the truth of the matter is that it is government's lack of strategic planning, especially with regard to the dysfunctional Eskom, that lies at the heart of the problem.

The price at which Eskom sells electricity to some municipalities is daylight robbery. Electricity prices are set to increase between 19,8% and 27,7% in various municipalities, and no South African is exempt from a price increase of some nature. This is exacerbated by the fact that real wages of most South Africans have either remained stagnant, or decreased over an extended period of time.

The Congress of the People re-iterates its position that a decisive move towards cleaner sources of energy, such as wind and solar, in conjunction with allowing independent power producers to enter the market, would dramatically reduce the cost of producing electricity and these savings will be passed on to ordinary South Africans. The model of green energy is proven to produce jobs and sustainably boost the economy and productivity of entire nations. The only reason for government's reticence in driving real economic growth from the energy sector is that it is in the pocket of the coal lobby.

We call on Eskom executives to freeze any pay increases or bonuses to themselves until at least 25% of our energy production is generated by wind and solar projects, preferably by independent power producers.