This morning in Tshwane, the Democratic Alliance protest action in an attempt to get answers on Eskom’s electricity crisis kicked off. Hundreds of DA members are expected to meet at Caledonian Stadium and march to the Union Buildings.
The party demands that the government address the power crisis faced by the country as it compromised the ability of the city to deliver basic services.
Load shedding has disrupted Johannesburg’s waters’ ability to pump water to its reservoirs and disrupted clinics and hospitals from providing health care, the DA said.
The party also protests against a looming tariff hike of over 9.4%, which is expected to come into effect next week. Maimane, who leads the march to union buildings, said it was unacceptable to make consumers pay the parastatals shortfalls. “South Africans cannot be subjected to rolling blackouts while also expected to pay high electricity tariffs.
He said the party was demanding answers on how the government planned to tackle the electricity crisis.
“Don’t be fooled by the lights back on this week. Between now and the election on May 8, the ANC will do everything in its power to keep the lights on. They will run power stations without maintenance until they break beyond repair.”
Eskom has been struggling to keep the lights on due to capacity issues, among allegations of corruption.
The DA also demand that parliament be reconvened and an ad hoc committee be established to tackle the crises. The party wrote to national assembly speaker Baleka Mbete last week to request the establishment of the committee.
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