Deputy Minister of Electricity and Energy Samantha Graham-Maré has pushed back against misinformation in the public on the role of local players in South Africa’s Independent Transmission Project (ITP) Programme.
The Deputy Minister was speaking at the Disinformation Dialogue hosted by the Institute of Security Studies on Wednesday, a dialogue aimed at countering disinformation and safeguarding local democracy.
South Africa’s ITP Programme is a flagship initiative to draw private investment for the expansion of the national grid.
The expansion of the grid is estimated to require about R440 billion – a bill government is unable to foot on its own.
“There has been [misinformation], specifically on the involvement of local industry where it has been indicated that we are only targeting internationals. This is not true. It speaks to the creation and graduation of future local ITP players as the programme rolls out.
“We need to ensure that we involve players who have previous experience in the space. On economic development related elements, we have used dtic [Department of Trade, Industry and Competition] designations for local content and also compliance with the dtic’s National Industrial Participation Programme, amongst other SED [socio-economic development] obligations,” she said.
Graham-Maré also rebuffed any “inferences” on the possible privatisation of the grid.
“The ITP programme is structured as a long-term concession with transfer back to the State at the end of the concession period.
“On operations, there will always only be one network operator, that is, the [state owned] National Transmission Company South Africa,” she explained.
Turning to disinformation in general, the Deputy Minister emphasised the damage that false information can bring about.
“Protecting the integrity of information is not simply about correcting what is false. It is about safeguarding how democracy functions in people’s everyday lives, especially at the local level.
“If that information is delayed or unclear, however briefly, a vacuum forms. And where credible information is absent, falsehoods take root and become fact,” she said.
Additionally, where people do not readily have access to the internet, the “onus is on us as government to directly engage citizens through the media but more so through public meetings, dialogues or interactions", the Deputy Minister said.
“Regardless of access, the cornerstone of our democracy should be more public engagements so that no vacuum is created.
“We can ensure that disinformation does not become the number one risk in our country. For this to be achieved, we have to be consistent in our interactions with the public, while regularly communicating with our people,” Graham-Maré noted. – SAnews.gov.za
