Diepsloot residents demand reliable power supply from Eskom
SUNNINGHILL – Diepsloot residents frustrated with the electricity issues the community constantly faces headed to Megawatt Park to hand over a list of demands.
About 150 Diepsloot residents took to the streets of Sunninghill on 26 October to protest the lack of proper electrical facilities in the township.
Residents arrived just before 10am at Eskom’s Megawatt Park. The march was peaceful, with a heavy presence of private security and officers of the police and Metro police.
Chairperson of the Diepsloot Residents Association, Edward Mkhomazi said protesters were there to hand over a memorandum of demands to Eskom.
“We have had issues with Eskom for a long time. There are issues of [alleged] corruption and our residents have been without electricity for almost eight months,” Mkhomazi said. “The illegal connections in our area are dangerous to children there and we want them to be safe.”
Eskom Megawatt Park customer service manager, KK Masisi came out surrounded by police to accept the memorandum. Joseph Mvelase of the association read out the memorandum with the community’s list of demands.
The demands included:
• Provide Diepsloot with reliable, well capacitated transformers with a high voltage
• All informal settlements and squatter camps must be electrified
• They want Eskom to build a power station for Diepsloot township just like Dainfern
• They want Eskom to roll out smart meter boxes after new transformers have been installed to all extensions
• They want Eskom to replace current [allegedly] corrupt technicians who are operating in Diepsloot.
The memorandum was accepted by Eskom. They were given seven days to respond and take action.
Youth community leader in Diepsloot, Loyiso Toyiya said, “We arrived and were peaceful throughout the morning. We have been without electricity for eight months and felt we should come here instead of causing violence.
“Hopefully, they [Eskom] will keep to their word and respond within seven days and we’ll take it from there. If they don’t or we don’t get a proper response, we will come back until we do,” concluded Toyiya.
