Unhappy residents from Wesbank delivered a memorandum of demands to Eskom last week demanding immediate action to stop the unplanned load shedding.
In addition, they also demanded a speedy resolution to the problems the people are experiencing because of their poor service.
Even though the entire country is experiencing load shedding, electricity never comes back on in Wesbank after the scheduled load shedding. Sometimes residents have gone days without electricity and violent protests have erupted over the years.
Cable theft is also a big problem in the area. As soon as the lights go off, thieves attack the infrastructure.
According to Ebrahim Sawant, a local ward councillor who led the march to Eskom, on the day they delivered the memorandum Wesbank was again left in darkness.
“This situation has now become a life-threatening crisis. We are demanding a meeting on 8 June for the provincial management of Eskom to report back to us what interventions are proposed by their national counterparts,” says Sawant.
Sawant urged the community to remain calm.
“We call on the community to refrain from any form of violent behaviour but remain patient under extremely difficult circumstances,” says Sawant.
