'How Can We Live Without Electricity?': Joburg Residents March to Eskom In Protest Against CEO Andre de Ruyter

• Johannesburg residents have taken to the streets to express their frustrations of ongoing loadshedding
• On their list of demands, residents would like to see Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter fired as well as Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan
• Heading to the Eskom Megawatt Park head offices in Sunninghill, residents from Ivory Park say they have not had electricity for nine months

JOHANNESBURG - Scores of people have marched down in anger and frustration to Eskom Megawatt Park head offices at Sunninghill, Johannesburg in protest against the rolling blackouts that have gripped the entire nation.

Residents say they want the Minister of Public Enterprises as well as Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter to be fired for the ongoing loadshedding that hit South Africa in the past week.

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Earlier this week, de Ruyter stated that he had no intention of stepping down as the head of the power utility and would only take that action if the Eskom board told him to do so, reports the Daily Maverick.

Residents express their frustrations at Eskom march

One woman who was in attendance at the protest told SABC News reporters that she was tired of living without electricity.

"I am tired. How can we live without electricity, even for one day? Can you live without electricity, even for one day?" she asked a reporter.

Another resident from Ivory Park said the residents of the community are protesting to demand nine transformers from Eskom. He says the Ivory Parks have been asking for these transformers for the past nine months, since March.

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"It's been about nine months without electricity, so we requested Eskom to help us. They said 60% must pay; those who are owing Eskom, those who don't buy electricity," he said.

He went on to say Eskom cannot punish everyone because others are failing to pay the power utility. The resident added that people in the community don't have the money to Eskom so they can get those transformers because 30% of them are pensioners and 20% are unemployed.

Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyer says he's not stepping down amid loadshedding

Briefly News previously reported that more and more organisations are calling for Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter as well as COO Jan Oberholzer to be axed because of the ongoing implementation of rolling blackouts.

Trade union Numsa is the latest organisation to express its frustrations with the management of Eskom.

Taking to Twitter, the trade union stated that De Ruyter has not been able to fulfil his mandate of ending loadshedding as he had promised. The organisation says more qualified executives with engineering experience should be appointed.

Source: Briefly News