Power up: DA's Graham-Maré sees no problem being Ramakgopa's deputy

CAPE TOWN - Highly critical of the introduction of an electricity minister last year, the Democratic Alliance (DA) now finds itself sharing power in this new department. 
 
The party’s Samantha Graham-Maré said that as the newly-minted deputy minister of electricity and energy, she wanted to harness new innovation in the sector. 
 
In his new Cabinet, President Cyril Ramaphosa has removed the energy portfolio from the department of mineral resources. 
 
Kgosientsho Ramakgopa has retained his job as the electricity minister. 
 
Appointed as a lone ranger without a full ministry in March last year, his immediate job was to end the power cuts. 
 
Now set to become a fully-fledged department, Deputy Minister Graham-Maré said the energy crisis was the country’s biggest problem it’s faced that has impacted all spheres. 
 
Graham-Maré said that South Africa's energy mix must be broadened.
 
"Now with bringing energy and electricity together, that makes sense to us, because then Eskom will be reporting to this ministry and then we will have an all-encompassing policy that speaks to the whole energy mix, as opposed to three disparate portfolios."
 
As for working with an African National Congress (ANC) minister, Graham-Maré foresees no problem. 
 
"Despite the public spats, he and I get along really, really well, I have huge respect for him. I worked with him when I was on the public works committee and he was the head of Infrastructure South Africa, and at that stage, I held him in such high regard for the work he had done in that portfolio."
 
She said both her and Ramakgopa had incredible energy to turn around the sector.