Msunduzi electricity department staff on Monday blocked traffic in the Pietermaritzburg city centre in a protest over safety issues after a colleague suffered a severe electrical shock on Saturday.
SA Municipal Workers’ Union members demonstrated outside the city hall, demanding to speak to municipal manager Mxolisi Nkosi about their concerns regarding safety, the failure to fill vacant positions and the restructuring of the municipality.
The protest came a few days after the council’s executive committee was told that the municipality could lose its electricity distribution licence if it failed to hire a process manager for the electricity department.
The revelation prompted questions about the city’s electricity challenges, with Nkosi disclosing that R700 million was needed over five years to deal with infrastructure problems.
Union members parked vehicles belonging to the department on lanes outside the city hall, blocking and disrupting traffic from 9.30am to 12.30pm.
At noon, when Nkosi failed to show up, the protestors dispersed.
Samwu regional deputy chairman Rocky Madondo said one of his colleagues had suffered an electrical shock while on duty in Clarendon on Saturday.
“We are a ship without a captain. There is no process manager,” he said, accusing Nkosi of failing to consult with the union on various issues.
Nkosi responded that occupational health and safety issues, which were ongoing challenges, were being addressed.
He denied failing to discuss workers’ grievances. - The Mercury