Cape Town – Load shedding remains a problem, three years after President Cyril Ramaphosa “promised that blackouts would be a thing of the past”, says One SA Movement leader, Mmusi Maimane.
On his Twitter page, Maimane said that load shedding had become “a big Ankole of a problem for the whole economy”.
South Africa has been load shedding for about a week, with various stages being announced.
The country was moved back to stage 4 load shedding on Tuesday until 05:00 on Thursday.
eNCA reported on Tuesday that the power utility had warned earlier that the country may experience 49 weeks of load-shedding over the next year.
[VIEWER QUESTION] Eskom says the country could experience at least 49 weeks of stage 2 power cuts in the next year. Will you be investing in backup power? Head to https://t.co/srSwp4H5Hm to vote or comment on our social media platforms. #SAMorning pic.twitter.com/gvj9numgd9
— eNCA (@eNCA) September 13, 2022
Mzansi social media users were angered by the news, including Maimane who took to his Twitter page to hold the president accountable for his promises.
The president was in the Eskom War room in 2015. A full seven years ago.
3 years ago @CyrilRamaphosa promised that blackouts would be a thing of the past and yet they have become a big Ankole of a problem for the whole economy.
— Mmusi Maimane (@MmusiMaimane) September 13, 2022
“The president was in the Eskom war room in 2015. A full seven years ago. Three years ago Ramaphosa promised blackouts would be a thing of the past and yet they have become a big Ankole of a problem for the whole economy,” he tweeted.
On Monday, the Mail & Guardian reported that the power utility management team gave an update on the electricity crisis where it said that the varying stages of load shedding were due to 42 units that had tripped in the week but indicated that 37 had been restored.
“It is important to understand that we have various plans in place, to increase installed capacity and stop load-shedding. However, this is going to take time to implement. I believe for the next 12 months, or so, we may not see the required benefits yet,” the report quoted Eskom COO, Jan Oberholzer.
He also gave details about Eskom’s financial woes which he suggested would worsen.
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Compiled by Olwethu Mpeshe
