The Democratic Alliance (DA) said it would march to the African National Congress’ headquarters at Luthuli House in Johannesburg, to demonstrate against rolling power cuts and the latest electricity tariff increase.
The march is planned to take place on 25 January.
This after energy regulator Nersa approved Eskom’s application tariff increase by 18.65% for the 2023/2024 financial year. This as the country contends will stage 6 load shedding.
DA leader John Steenhuisen said consumers must join in to march against the ANC’s destruction of the country’s energy infrastructure and the economy as well as to demand urgent solutions to the escalating crisis.
“We will specifically target Luthuli House, because this is the scene of the crime that the ANC continues to perpetrate against the people of South Africa through permanent stage 6 load shedding and the latest 18.65% electricity tariff increase. It is at Luthuli House where, over the past three decades, the decisions were made to “deploy” the corrupt and incompetent cadres who plundered and destroyed Eskom.
“It is at Luthuli House that corrupt tenders were handed out, including for the ill-fated construction of the Medupi and Kusile power stations that have cost our country so dearly,” Steenhuisen said.
Households are battling to put food on the table. Businesses are struggling to pay their staff. Stage 6 load shedding is costing South Africa between R4 billion to R6 billion a day, the DA said
“It is time to show the ANC that we do not accept that it always chooses the option most painful to ordinary South Africans and least painful to itself when it should be closing the taps on ANC corruption, unbundling Eskom and privatising most of it, opening the electricity market to private competition, bringing in skilled engineers, and exempting Eskom and other energy producers from all cumbersome localisation and BEE rules.”
Source: News24, Eyewitness News, Times Live, image from Twitter: @RantsSouth