Outspoken banker Lloyd Blankfein, Goldman Sachs' CEO and chairman, has "advised" leaders of government-owned companies to get their houses in order - especially troubled Eskom. In a response to a question he may have preferred to dodge, the 60-year-old veteran banker told the audience attending the Gordon Institute of Business Science forum this week that South Africa has to get its infrastructure "right" as this is a precursor to growth and development.His answer came with a disclaimer that made certain that he does not step on anyone's toes. "How are you going to get people [in South Africa] to launch manufacturing and build businesses if the power is going to go off predictably or even worse - unpredictably," Wall Street's most powerful banker said.He echoed sentiments of local business, and said the power grid has to be "sorted out".Power shortages have crippled the South Africa's economic potential over the years at an estimated cost of R300-billion.Dawie Roodt, chief economist at Efficient Group, previously told Business Times that South Africa's economy could have grown by as much as 10% and created more than a million jobs had it not been for the power crisis that started effecting the economy in 2008.Blankfein stressed that South Africa needed to get "good management in the biggest industries and biggest companies."His comments followed the recent appointment of Brian Molefe as Eskom's acting CEO after the suspension of its boss, Thediso Matona, and three other executives and the resignation of chairman Zola Tsotsi.Blankfein said the appointment of "good management" at government-owned companies is with good reason as South Africa has many state-owned enterprises.His point was that in countries such as his - the US - those types of companies would be privatised or listed on the bourse.Listed companies are generally subject to shareholder pressure to perform well. They are forced to be more transparent and are subject to market pressures.Blankfein understands the issues facing a developing country such as South Africa and the reasons for handling economic growth matters differently, but warned that "if there is no market discipline, not market transparency, that might not be good".He called for a hybrid model that is similar to China's, where huge companies that are vital to the development of the country are partly owned by private shareholders that care about the sustainability and longevity of the business .His comments are in line with hints by Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene, who is considering selling stakes in some of government's noncore assets to raise funds for the ailing power utility.Blankfein, who used to visit South Africa frequently when he was a head of Goldman Sachs's precious metals desk, remains bullish on the country.He said that South Africa had "enormous potential" but also "a lot of risk"...