Eskom CEO André de Ruyter has resigned. With rumours of mismanagement and incompetency surrounding De Ruyter, the news has brought hope that load shedding will cease or become less frequent.
According to reports, De Ruyter told the electricity public utility board of his choice to call it quits on Wednesday. Last week, Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe claimed that Eskom was “plotting to overthrow the government”.
Now with De Ruyter’s resignation, other high-ranking officials at Eskom may follow suit. It was announced in November that the Eskom board would take a deeper look at the performances of the power utility’s leaders, especially the former chief executive.
2022 has had the highest load-shedding hours of any year, according to EskomSePush. The rolling blackouts came back with a vengeance and, according to reports, might be here indefinitely if there is not any drastic change taken.
The havoc it has wrought has been felt throughout all industries in South Africa, from homes, small businesses to large companies.
EskomSePush, a monitoring app for power outages, claimed that load shedding has been extremely prevalent in 2022. The popular app was invented by Dan Southwood-Wells and Herman Maritz and launched in 2014.
In a tweet that parodies Spotify’s Wrapped, EskomSePush said that Mzansi has endured 192 720 minutes of load shedding so far this year. This is 200% more than any other year, according to the app.
Loadshedding 2022 Wrapped! 😅 pic.twitter.com/jqIdiG5hxr
— EskomSePush (ESP) (@EskomSePush) December 7, 2022
Meanwhile, ordinary South Africans have had to make do with numerous hours without power. It is now commonplace to see civilians directing vehicles at traffic lights when load shedding strikes.
These guys ke di bosso, come rain or shine, they are there to do the deed. @JoburgMPD, they deserve xmas bonusenyana mara waitse #loadshedding pic.twitter.com/IbEXNmidPF
— MLesh237 (@mlesh237) November 29, 2022
Including the obvious effects, load shedding can spell doom for the country’s economy. This is according to economist Dawie Roodt, who said it would contribute to the high-unemployment levels.
“What I am certain of is that the country’s economic growth trajectory does not look promising. It is likely the country will face higher levels of unemployment. So, even a rate of 40% might be possible if load shedding continues,’’ Roodt warned.
He warned that if South Africa did not take immediate action, the problem could worsen until it reached its peak.
“We should take Sri Lanka as a warning story, because once the minute to midnight (Stage 8) phase hits, it would mean a total blackout. Something you can’t just switch on overnight, so chances are we’ll sit in total darkness for days,’’ Roodt told Weekend Argus.
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