It is time for the City of Cape Town to take over supplying electricity to certain areas in the Metropolitan from Eskom.
The City of Cape Town currently supplies power to 75% of the Metro, while Eskom supplies the other 25% directly.
The areas supplied by Eskom frequently suffer outages lasting anywhere from weeks to months.
For instance, Fisantekraal in Durbanville did not have electricity for weeks despite numerous attempts by Eskom to restore power supply.
Yesterday, ongoing power outages led to protest actions in Elsies River and Ravensmead.
Most of the affected households do not have internet access and can, therefore, not report any power problems directly to Eskom, so, they turn to councillors instead.
In response, the Freedom Front Plus (VF Plus) was able to get Eskom technicians to address the power problems within 24 to 48 hours.
It is not a long-term solution, though.
Currently, legislation prohibits the City of Cape Town from repairing power faults in areas serviced by Eskom. Only the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) has the authority to change this.
The Freedom Front Plus urges the City of Cape Town to continue pursuing the takeover of areas serviced by Eskom to put an end to the persistent power outages plaguing these residents.
Should Eskom keep refusing to allow Cape Town to take over its electricity distribution areas, the party will launch a petition to mobilise affected residents and compel Eskom to relinquish control.
In the meantime, residents can report power issues via the Alfred chatbot on WhatsApp at 0860 037 566.
If Eskom fails to respond within 24 hours, residents are welcome to contact Freedom Front Plus Councillor Emre Uygun via WhatsApp at 081 494 7270 or email at Emre.uygun@capetown.gov.za.