DA Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) mayoral candidate Kingsol Chabalala says the Evaton Imbizo, led by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, is an election gimmick and a waste of residents’ time. Chabalala says for years, electricity failures across Emfuleni have damaged businesses, disrupted learning and made communities unsafe.
“Residents have submitted petitions, attended public hearings and written letters asking the government to intervene. In 2023, a petition with more than 5,000 signatures was brought before Parliament on behalf of Emfuleni residents. It concerned Eskom’s failure to replace broken transformers. Some residents had been without electricity for two years or longer. Eskom failed to attend the hearing. In some cases, residents were reportedly expected to contribute towards transformers or sign acknowledgement-of-debt forms before power could be restored.”
According to Chabalala, Premier Lesufi promised to repair faulty transformers and replace those beyond repair by March 2024.
“In October 2024, I joined the DA in delivering a memorandum to the Premier’s office demanding that he keep his promise. During a DA oversight visit to Evaton in 2025, residents told us they had been without electricity for more than ten years. Elderly residents could not keep food fresh. Families spent scarce money on paraffin and gas.”
Chabalala states that residents of Vanderbijlpark face the same crisis: In March, residents in the Central West were without electricity for six weeks. He said that the Currie Boulevard Substation had become a major problem. Chabalala believes that electricity failures are driving away investment and destroying jobs.
“An imbizo will not replace a transformer, repair a substation or restore electricity to a single household. Residents should not be called to another gathering to hear promises they have heard before. Instead of holding an Imbizo, the Premier must implement the resolutions arising from the Emfuleni electricity petition. Emfuleni needs a funded electricity recovery plan covering Evaton, Vanderbijlpark, Sebokeng, Bophelong, Boipatong, Sharpeville and Vereeniging.”
Chabalala believes that the plan must provide for transformer replacements, substation upgrades, maintenance, infrastructure protection and cooperation between Eskom, Emfuleni and the Gauteng Provincial Government.
