The Democratic Alliance (DA) demands that the City of Tshwane acts immediately to solve the regional electricity infrastructure collapse. For once, Mayor Moya is able to solve a problem that her administration has created, and must act now.
Currently, Regional Electricity Departments are being forced to operate on an average budget of just R1.5 million per region. In the context of a major metro grid like the City of Tshwane, this is a drop in the ocean. This lack of funding has a direct impact on the City’s distribution, maintenance, and operation teams, who are being set up to fail.
Without the necessary funding to procure parts and perform preventative maintenance, the City’s electricity network remains in a state of decline.
The entire City suffers, but Region 3, 4, and 6 are the hardest hit. They have been systematically failed by the Central Department. Worst still, is the 40% vacancy rate in the staffing structure. The City can easily act, and fix this obvious administrative failure.
As a result, service delivery in these regions has taken a back seat. Ward Councillors are being inundated with desperate calls from frustrated residents, yet the City remains silent.
Outages that should be resolved in hours now last for days. The backlog of unattended faults just continues to grow.
In the meantime, the ANC’s Mayor rushes to substations for “ribbon-cutting” photo opportunities to electioneer on projects she did not start. While she seeks credit for the work of others, she simultaneously ignores the urgent maintenance required on existing infrastructure.
Her administration can act now, and make life easier for Tshwane’s residents:
- Focus all available resources on areas that have been without power for multiple days;
- Shift technical personnel from least-affected regions to the hardest-hit areas (Regions 3, 4, and 6); and
- Move support staff around to assist with the backlog, the City can resolve the crisis without relying on disputed overtime, ensuring teams are sufficiently capacitated to restore power.
The DA will not stand by while honest, tax-paying residents are treated with contempt. We will continue to fight for the accountability and service delivery that every citizen of this city deserves.