Chairperson of the Public Enterprises Committee, Khaya Magaxa, has lambasted Democratic Alliance (DA) Member of Parliament, Ghaleb Cachalia, for describing state-owned entities (SOEs) as being in ICU.
Cachalia made the remarks during the briefing by the Department of Public Enterprises on its annual performance plan for financial 2023/24.
Magaxa says such descriptions are not helpful. “We are not doing justice to the problems that we are facing because we (are) throwing lies on the problem; because we sought exaggeration… Yes, most of our own state-owned entities, especially this department, are undergoing serious challenges for different reasons. However, it’s not correct. I think honourable Dlamini was spot on. It’s not correct nor helpful to suggest that all, except SAFCON, is in the ICU.”
State of SOEs
State-owned entities continue to be a major burden for the fiscus. Many have been unable to deliver in line with their mandate, with the financial health of many of them under the spotlight.
The government no longer has the fiscal depth or room to bail them out. And SOE consolidations are on the cards. But what’s the way forward as these changes occur?
Nompulelo Siziba elaborates in the package below from January last year:
-Additional reporting by Nompulelo Siziba
