The possible state of disaster, which President Cyril Ramaphosa announced as a solution to the electricity crisis, must be very clearly defined.
The same abuse of power, like with the Covid-19 state of disaster, must not repeat itself.
States of disaster are not uncommon. Last year in KwaZulu-Natal, for example, a state of disaster was announced with the specific aim of alleviating the effects of the floods, which caused severe damage.
On one condition, the FF Plus wants the exact reasons and rules that will apply with such a state of disaster to be spelled out.
It is important to prevent corruption from being committed on large scale with funds that become easily accessible through special measures, like during the Covid-19 state of disaster.
Among other things, proper parliamentary oversight must be exercised over the implementation of any state of disaster relating to the electricity crisis. Furthermore, an Ad Hoc committee must be established to monitor the process.
The President must also spell out how long the state of disaster will last.
The irony of the matter is that government itself created this problem, which it now wants to address by implementing a state of disaster.
Better oversight is, therefore, of the utmost importance to prevent this planned state of disaster from turning into a corruption disaster of its own, just like with Covid-19.
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