Keep political posters off electricity poles – Eskom
Eskom has condemned this practice and would like to reiterate that only authorised Eskom employees are allowed near electrical poles and mini-substations.
POLOKWANE – As the South African public will once again head to the polls to vote in the local government elections, the campaign process has been met with its fair share of challenges.
Eskom has identified the dangerous practice of placing campaign posters on electrical poles and mini-substations. In most cases, people use inappropriate ladders and equipment to put the posters up, endangering the lives of many. Eskom has condemned this practice and would like to reiterate that only authorised Eskom employees are allowed near electrical poles and mini-substations.
Phemelo Biloane, Communications Practitioner for Eskom’s Limpopo Unit says warning signs on electrical units are there for a reason.
“While Eskom respects the rights of political formations to campaign, we urge everyone to refrain from placing posters on electrical installations as this is a dangerous practice.
“The safety of the public around our installations is Eskom’s top priority. We therefore ask anyone putting up posters on electricity poles and mini-substations to refrain from doing so. It is our hope that members of the community will cooperate with us in ensuring their own safety.”
DA Provincial Leader Jacques Smalle says the DA does not place campaign signs on electricity poles or mini-substations.
“There are by-laws that govern the election process. We should all know better than to put up posters where we are not allowed to. I have noticed that this happens mostly in rural areas. We do not place our posters on transformers or other dangerous electrical installations. When we come across our posters in places where they’re not supposed to be, we remove them immediately. We always try our level best to follow the rules,” Smalle explains.
“We don’t want to endanger any lives when we put up our posters, says EFF Secretary in Limpopo, Jossey Buthane. “We try to place our posters in places that will not endanger our people. If we see them in dangerous places, we remove them, but Eskom must take into consideration that this is election time and we have to campaign,” says Buthane. The ANC could not be reached for comment.
