--- title: "Ramokgopa’s rise; Eskom’s tariff impact; and the curious cannabis health history" type: "NewsArticle" publisher: "Daily Maverick" site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za" section: "Articles" canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-29-ramokgopas-rise-eskoms-tariff-impact-and-the-curious-cannabis-health-history/" published: "2025-03-29T00:00:00" lang: "en-ZA" word_count: 772 --- # Ramokgopa’s rise; Eskom’s tariff impact; and the curious cannabis health history Published 29 March 2025, 02:00 SAST ## Content ## The Weekend Wrap Ramokgopa’s rise; how Eskom’s 2025/26 electricity tariffs will affect residential customers; and the curious history of cannabis as a health product. ## [Ramokgopa is on a seemingly stellar trajectory — but there are obstacles on his path to power](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-23-ramokgopa-is-on-a-seemingly-stellar-trajectory-but-there-are-obstacles-on-his-path-to-power/) With the ANC desperate for figures associated with success, Electricity and Energy Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa stands out. However, he has to deal with two difficult problems that could dent his image. By Stephen Grootes ## [SA set for a rougher ride under Trump’s new ambassador Leo Brent Bozell III](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-26-sa-set-for-a-rougher-ride-under-trumps-new-ambassador-leo-brent-bozell-iii/) Leo Brent Bozell III was due to head the Voice of America and other US government media operations — until Donald Trump effectively terminated them. By Peter Fabricius ## The Weekend Wrap Ramokgopa’s rise; how Eskom’s 2025/26 electricity tariffs will affect residential customers; and cannabis’s curious health history. ![Ramokgopa](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/grootes-3.jpg?fit=720%2C360&quality=89&ssl=1) ## [Ramokgopa is on a seemingly stellar trajectory — but there are obstacles on his path to power](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-23-ramokgopa-is-on-a-seemingly-stellar-trajectory-but-there-are-obstacles-on-his-path-to-power/) With the ANC desperate for figures associated with success, Electricity and Energy Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa stands out. However, he has to deal with two difficult problems that could dent his image. By Stephen Grootes ![Bozell](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/GettyImages-521220070.jpg?fit=720%2C437&quality=89&ssl=1) ## [SA set for a rougher ride under Trump’s new ambassador Leo Brent Bozell III](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-26-sa-set-for-a-rougher-ride-under-trumps-new-ambassador-leo-brent-bozell-iii/) Leo Brent Bozell III was due to head the Voice of America and other US government media operations — until Donald Trump effectively terminated them. By Peter Fabricius ![Image](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Ferial-Eskom-tariffsTW-option-1.jpg?fit=720%2C360&quality=89&ssl=1) ## [How Eskom’s 2025/26 electricity tariffs will affect residential customers](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-24-how-eskoms-2025-26-electricity-tariffs-will-affect-residential-customers/) This article reports on a study by EE Business Intelligence conducted for the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) on the impacts on Eskom’s direct residential customers of the utility’s restructured electricity tariffs and electricity price increases for the 2025/26 financial year. By Chris Yelland ## AfriForum and Solidarity Movement’s Washington lobbying trip is big on hype, scant on details The Solidarity Movement has gained unprecedented levels of publicity through their Washington visit where they have repeatedly claimed to have met with some of the most powerful people in the US. But who were they? Daily Maverick’s Rebecca Davis explains. By Rebecca Davis ## [Diversity diverted — global headwinds force rethinking of BEE in SA](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-24-diversity-diverted-global-headwinds-force-rethinking-of-bee-in-sa/) South Africa’s economic and social stability hinges on genuine, not superficial, transformation. By Yeshiel Panchia ![Illustrative image showing hands reaching towards a map of South Africa superimposed with the word BEE](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Screenshot-2025-03-20-at-13.59.43.png?fit=720%2C639&quality=80&ssl=1) ## [We swipe our phones and casually ignore 80 dead children in under an hour](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2025-03-27-80-dead-children-in-under-an-hour-in-gaza-hardly-registers-a-blip/) Is our ignorance and perhaps wilful blindness about what is happening in Gaza just about the politics of the region, the duration of the genocide? Or does it suggest something else? By Mark Tomlinson ![US-SA relations](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/SA-Relations-copy-scaled.jpg?fit=720%2C385&quality=89&ssl=1) ## [US-SA relations — some adults in the room are needed](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-24-us-sa-relations-some-adults-in-the-room-are-needed/) The South African-American bilateral relationship is gyrating wildly and without much effort to set a stable course. There is a better way, but that will take some actual effort by serious people from both nations. By J Brooks Spector ## [Groundbreaking lawsuit could be the start of professional tennis reform](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-26-lawsuit-could-be-start-of-professional-tennis-reform/) Last week the Professional Tennis Players’ Association launched a lawsuit against the ATP Tour, the WTA Tour, the International Tennis Federation and the International Tennis Integrity Agency. Why? By Craig Ray ## [Breaking barriers – I finally found a way to lose weight without injections such as Ozempic](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-25-breaking-barriers-how-community-and-commitment-transformed-my-approach-to-fitness/) Weight loss, when done correctly, is hard, tedious, grinding work, but the benefits for your physical and mental wellbeing are significant enough for you to push through the pain. By Sukasha Singh [Video on Daily Maverick](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-29-ramokgopas-rise-eskoms-tariff-impact-and-the-curious-cannabis-health-history/) ## [Robbing a bank when no one’s looking](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-28-robbing-a-bank-when-no-ones-looking/?dm_source=dm_block_grid&dm_medium=card_link&dm_campaign=main) The Saya de Malha Bank is existentially crucial to the planet because it is one of the world’s biggest seagrass meadows and thus carbon sinks. However, because of its remote location, it is not protected by any major binding international treaties. Ian Urbina ## [From hempseed gruel to CBD: the curious history of cannabis as a health product](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-27-from-hempseed-gruel-to-cbd-the-curious-history-of-cannabis-as-a-health-product/) Today’s regulatory gaps and health concerns about CBD reflect those of the 19th century, when cannabis was first commercialised by the food industry. By Lauren Alex O’Hagan ## [Gold beneath the gloom — five amazing things to explore in Jozi](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-27-gold-beneath-the-gloom-5-amazing-things-to-explore-in-jozi/) It’s good to be reminded that alongside the urban decay, there are vibrant attractions too. By Bridget Hilton-Barber ![Image](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/2023_04_24_CROSSWORDS-GIF-TEST3-1.gif?fit=400%2C217&ssl=1) ## [Daily Mini Crossword Quickie](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/mini-crosswords/) [Play here.](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/mini-crosswords/) ## [Poutine — that’s what needs a tariff on it](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-28-poutine-thats-what-needs-a-tariff-on-it/) Oh and Buffalo wings (yes, they’re from actual Buffalo, New York state). And white-haired old hippies in ponytails wearing tie dye in the hippie netherworld that is Woodstock today. Yep, we were on a trip through the Midwest to get my kid back to college. By Chris Pretorius [Subscribe to First Thing](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/edit-my-profile/) to receive the Weekend Wrap in your inbox every Sunday morning. If you value the work our journalists do and want to support Daily Maverick, consider becoming a Maverick Insider. 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