ActionSA announces plans to end Soweto electricity crisis
27 October 2021
Today, ActionSA is pleased to share our Plan To Fix Johannesburg Electricity Supply Failures with the people of Soweto, outlining a path for ending their abuse at the hands of Eskom and ANC corruption.
The people of Johannesburg, and Soweto in particular, have long been part of the Eskom supply areas in the City of Johannesburg. During election campaign season, successive ANC governments have either promised free electricity or electricity at a flat rate regardless of usage. Now 2021, Eskom is now responding to this situation by credit managing entire communities – removing transformers and leaving people and businesses in the dark irrespective of whether they are willing to pay or not. Denying people their right to basic services without due cause is utterly unconstitutional.
To put this matter to an end, ActionSA has met with former senior officials at ESKOM, and engaged other experts, to ensure formulation and viability of a plan to provide stable power to Soweto, but also the whole of Johannesburg. This three-pronged plan is premised on two non-negotiable imperatives, namely:
the need to treat residents in ESKOM supply areas like all other residents and;
to ensure the financial sustainability of the City of Johannesburg.
In order to achieve this vision for Johannesburg residents, in government, ActionSA would implement the following measures –
Legal Action
Initiating legal action against to ensure that all ESKOM supply areas are returned to the City of Johannesburg to supply. There cannot be two standards of electricity supply in the City.
The provision of electricity is envisioned by Section 4(b) of our Constitution to be provided by municipalities. It is therefore untenable for a municipality to observe a segment of its population being shut off for weeks on end while other residents enjoy protections against such mistreatment.
NERSA Regulations state that ESKOM can supply directly to residents of a municipality when the municipality lacks the capacity to do so. This was no doubt intended for small local municipalities in rural areas where presumably establishing and maintaining electricity distribution networks would be financially unsustainable.
It cannot be said in 2021 that Johannesburg lacks the capacity to provide electricity to certain communities while it continues to do exactly this for most residents of the City.
Initial dialogues had with experts reveal that ESKOM would be willing to explore the handover of the distribution given their own financial predicament as a State-Owned Entity.
Financial Sustainability
The first and most important step to taking over electricity distribution in Johannesburg is recognising it is not just Soweto that is supplied by ESKOM. Other prominent communities include Alexandra, Ennerdale, Diepsloot, Zandspruit, parts of Sandton, Fourways, Roodepoort and many others.
In claiming the right to provide electricity to our residents, an ActionSA led government would not just be claiming the provision of electricity to Soweto, but also to many other communities. Some of these communities would cross-subsidise the provision to others just as is the case currently in all municipalities.
The terms of our claiming supply to communities across Johannesburg would ensure that all historical debt is left with ESKOM who have failed to manage the situation because of its willingness to implement political demands of the ANC over many years.
Our plan would also include a transition agreement that subsidises the City’s efforts to assume supply of these communities, through an annual grant that could be phased out over time. This is in recognition of the period in which the City would be taking over infrastructure.
Critically, under an ActionSA-led government, the same policies that provide electricity to the majority of people would apply to these communities. Those who can pay will pay, and should they not pay, they will be credit managed like everyone else. People will not be credit managed in bulk as an entire community, but on the basis of an individual household. Those who cannot pay will be offered the same basket of free services as every other resident in Johannesburg.
The deliverables in our plan:
Improving electricity service delivery by taking over supply from Eskom: We will take step to ensure that the City of Johannesburg provides electricity directly to the residents of Soweto and Johannesburg. This includes initiating negotiations with Eskom and NERSA, taking collective legal action and partnering with other municipalities to encourage greater devolution of powers.
Improving service standards for City of Johannesburg customers: by reintegrating City Power into the City of Johannesburg, increasing our investment, repairs and maintenance budget, finally resolving billing issues and ensuring access to free basic services for vulnerable households, we will improve service delivery for all our direct customers.
Reducing reliance on Eskom: Eskom remains the largest supplier of electricity. We will provide protection against Eskom’s insufficient generation capacity by procuring electricity from independent power producers and empowering our residents to generate their own electricity.
Today, during our visit to Soweto and other parts of Johannesburg, we will ensure that our message is taken to the doorsteps of our communities. Indeed, the people of Soweto have been correct in chasing away the ANC’s leadership from their community; the ANC has broken every promise they have ever made.
The people of Soweto know that ActionSA’s commitment can be believed. They witnessed what took place under the multi-party government I led in terms of extended hours clinics, housing projects, title deeds, roads upgrades and many other critical projects.
While a project this ambitious will take years, it is a project that must begin soon to ensure that all Johannesburg residents are treated equally by their municipality as envisioned by our Constitution.
Issued by Herman Meshaba, Joburg Mayoral Candidate, ActionSA, 27 October 2021
