Eskom appeals load shedding exemption order
Eskom has filed an application for leave to appeal the decision of the high court in Pretoria which declared load shedding to be in breach of constitutional rights.
The UDM and 18 other organizations took the power utility to court demanding an end to load shedding and power cuts exemption for critical infrastructures including schools, police stations, hospitals, and clinics.
The December court ruling ordered Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa to take all reasonable steps to ensure critical state services aren’t affected by load shedding.
It comes on the heels of a case brought by various groups from the organized labour and civil society sector, as well as a number of political parties, with NUMSA as one of the applicants.
Eskom says it is of the view that a different court may arrive at a different conclusion.
"The order is vague it does not identify the “respondent organs of state” to which it relates; and it does not correlate the listed conduct with any particular organ of the state."
"It does not prescribe what constitutes reasonable steps; and it is unclear as it does not state whether the “reasonable steps” are to be taken with or without Eskom."
Eskom says the court erred by making a blanket approach order.
"Erroneous inclusion of Eskom in the order, the Court declared that the “respondent organs of state” breached obligations to protect and promote the rights contained in the Bill of Rights."
"It did not identify who the respondent organs of state were, Eskom is an organ of state and was cited as the respondent in both the DA Application and the UDM Application. To the extent that Eskom is included in the declaration by the Court against the “respondent organs of state”, then the Court erred..."
"The Court erred in justifying its “blanket order” on the basis that “there appears to be much merit in the DA's argument that organs of state are involved in a proverbial ‘blame game’ as far as load shedding is concerned”.
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