VEREENIGING – Eatonside residents have been left furious after they were plunged into darkness for over three weeks. As a result, Ward 39 councillor Basa Lekeletsane accompanied by Ward Committee Member Sisa Mofokeng, barricaded the gate at the Emfuleni Local Municipality electrical department premises located at the Duncanville depot.
Ster North arrived at the scene on April 29 and found that Lekeletsane had completely blocked traffic from both directions by parking his car at the gate, preventing any entry or exit of vehicles from the premises.
Talking to Ster North, Lekeletsane said he was forced to take the drastic measure after seeing how dire the situation was in his ward due to a power outage that has left the community desperate for a solution.
“A large number of people living in my ward are elderly people who have now had to suffer multiple weeks of electricity outage. The past few weeks have been extremely cold with heavy rains, and residents had to figure out how to survive without electricity. It is not everyone who can afford gas as an alternative source of energy.”
Lekeletsane explained that he had reported the matter to multiple people working in the Electrical Department. He said that instead of fixing the problem, they were sending him from pillar to post.
Lekeletsane said the outage had affected some houses while others had electricity. He highlighted that the problem was worsening as the number of affected houses was on the rise.
“If we were talking about the damage of a transformer, I would understand that it may be difficult for the municipality to immediately attend to the problem. All we want is for someone to go and have a look and try to find a solution so that the community does not continue to suffer.”
Lekeletsane said he had left the community behind and informed them that he would seek answers from the Electrical Department.
“I have been elected by members of the community to stand up for their rights. They expect me to give them answers when issues of service delivery arise.”
Mofokeng said that the councillor took action because members of the community were blaming him for the problem they are currently facing. He highlighted the frustration of not having electricity during the cold weather conditions. ELM’s media relations officer Chuchi Radebe said he would engage with the Electrical Department and further investigate what the problem is.
