POLOKO TAU
COUNCILLORS in Kagiso, west of Joburg, have expressed fear that they may be attacked by angry residents protesting over regular power blackouts in the area.
Residents took to the streets yesterday, burning tyres and barricading streets in Kagiso 2 and surrounding areas, which have been without power since Wednesday.
The protesters blocked the busy Themba Street with large rocks, closing it off to traffic.
Councillors Emmanuel Molefi and Ignatius Nzwane, whose areas were affected, were locked in a meeting with Eskom, pleading with them to restore power and save their houses from being burnt, as was the case in Soweto two weeks ago.
Eskom, on the other hand, has blamed the rolling blackouts on illegal connections, bypassing of prepaid meters and cable theft.
Power utility spokeswoman Jane Mofokeng said an audit in the area has revealed that “almost 98 percent of customers in Kagiso were not paying for electricity”.
“Cable theft, the buying of electricity at a lower price from ghost vendors, illegal connections and bypassing of electricity supply is rife in the area. With all these people tending to use electricity inefficiently, there is no way our system can handle the increased demand and this leads to blackouts, especially in the evenings,” Mofokeng said.
Residents who spoke to The Star pointed fingers at the councillors for “not acting” on the regular power cuts.
“We have tried to get Eskom to explain the cause of blackouts and how this can be stopped. Councillors were also asked to intervene, but it doesn’t seem like they are doing anything about it,” said resident Tebogo Moswetsi.
“Schools are closed and children spend the day hungry; businesses suffer and whenever the electricity comes back on, it damages appliances.”
Another resident, Kelebogile Mokale, said several houses in her area had been without electricity for four days. “We have spent too much money on airtime calling the Eskom call centre, but we’re still in the dark,” Mokale said.
Councillors Molefi and Nzwane said they feared the repeat of what happened in Chiawelo, Soweto, where houses of former and serving councillors were burnt down during violent protests against prepaid electricity meters.
“I left my house very early in the morning and all I want is for Eskom to restore power so I can go back home. Threats are out there that our houses will be torched if the blackouts persist,” said Molefi.
“We have been engaging Eskom over these power cuts and so far they have failed to address it; and now we’re the ones bearing the brunt of angry residents. We’re scared for our lives and those of our families and relatives.”
Nzwane said although there were several problems, Eskom had not expanded their network capacity since the township had grown over the years.
“The demand has increased, but Eskom has not expanded its supply capacity. They must disconnect illegal connections and not complain about it,” he said.
Nzwane has refuted residents’ claims that the councillors were doing nothing about power cuts. “I have been handing out flyers to residents informing them about our discussions with Eskom,” he said.