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The National Energy Regulator of South Africa has today dealt another blow to our reeling economy in announcing increases of 24.8%, 25.8%, and 25.9% every April for the next three years.

With the increases being rubber stamped it looks as though Eskom's expansion plans will now be unilaterally foisted on the South African public.

The South African government and its economy are not ready for such an increase and the effects thereof. With the ruling party promising jobs and delivering a set of highly questionable "job opportunity" figures in lieu of real delivery, one questions how the rudderless executive and the bloated cabinet will be able to hide from the consequences of an angry electorate who were lied to, only now they will be much poorer. This is a recipe for further service delivery protests, which threaten the security of the State.

Politically it makes a further mockery of President Zuma's over optimistic State of the Nation address, while it gives the Minister of Finance absolutely no margin for error. We can forget about the Ministers growth projections and instead brace ourselves an inevitable increase in the inflation rate. These are figures that cannot be contended with, or stats that cannot be manipulated in any way.

If the government had any conscience whatsoever, it would expedite the process of bringing Independent Power Producers into the fold. Many of these producers use alternate energy, and this must be used in mitigation of the financial and environmental cost that these antiquated coal powered behemoths will incur.

COPE proposes that government must introduce a timeline for the introduction of a working system of carbon credits and further investment in alternative energy.

The process of public hearings held by NERSA was already deeply flawed, with only the regulator able to question speakers, and not members of the public.

Now more than ever we have to question who the true beneficiaries are of Eskom's expansion programme. The ruling party's financial relationship with the companies who won tenders to build power stations must be made public. The ANC must clarify the relationship between it and its investment arm, Chancellor house, and whether it will sever its business relationships with the companies that won tenders to build power stations. If it does not, it signals that the increases amount to nothing more than having ordinary South Africans, regardless of political affiliation, making involuntary contributions to the ANC.