AS the South African power crisis deepens, fears of total blackouts are also on the rise.
It is no secret that the past few months have been devastating for South Africans, particularly small businesses that have been forced to close their doors permanently because of load shedding.
This has drawn members of the public and politicians into condemning the continued load shedding, with EFF leader Julius Malema saying: “There will not be stage 10 after stage 8. We will go straight into darkness.”
Malema made this alarming observation while sitting with social activist Dr Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh on his TV show ‘Unfiltered’, where they were unpacking some of the country’s crucial issues.
Malema shared these thoughts a few days after it had been revealed that South Africans would have to brace themselves for a challenging winter.
Eskom had indicated that the power system was severely constrained and was at high risk of increased stages of load shedding come winter.
Eskom Board Chairperson, Mpho Makwana, said going through the winter months would be difficult and called for a coordinated effort among all stakeholders.
‘’We fully comprehend the adverse impact that rotational load shedding has on South Africa's already fragile economy and its people. We are doing everything to mitigate the intensity of rotational load shedding, including taking lessons from the rest of the world. We have seen that effective rotational load shedding during winter months requires a coordinated effort among all stakeholders within a country,’’ said Makwana.
‘’Corruption undermines value-creation and is an enemy of progress. It must be uprooted completely so that it does not hinder our efforts of performance improvement. Working through National Energy Crisis Committee (NECOM) streams, we see the fruits of collaboration between our internal forensic department, South African Police Service (SAPS), and the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) in dealing with cases of corruption,’’ Makwana added.
Electricity Minister Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa also highlighted that stage 6 power cuts would continue almost indefinitely as the system continues to be under substantial strain.
In a media briefing, where he detailed the implementation of the country's energy plan, he said: ‘’These unplanned outages resulted in Eskom being forced to implement Stage 6, and as Eskom's communication has been saying, it is Stage 6 almost indefinitely.’’
Also weighing in on the ongoing power crisis, GOOD party Secretary-General and Member of Parliament Brett Herron pointed out that those with the mandate to fix the problem have failed the country.
“Gordhan and De Ruyter are part of the broader leadership team in Eskom and government who have let the country down. Any attempt by either of them to exonerate themselves from blame by pinning the blame on the other is a pointless exercise and means nothing to South Africa,” he said.