Power to the people, but not through a plug!

I am surprised I am even able to begin this column; this is not to suggest that I will finish it, though. You never know when load-shedding will visit. Electricity is truly scarce nowadays. It is either taken away by load-shedding or through cut-offs of those who do not pay. Load-shedding prevails, whichever way you look at it.

But load-shedding does not bother or scare me. Electricity cut-offs had familiarised me with load-shedding long before it acquired its name. In this dusty side of the country we are used to staying without electricity; the only load-shedding experience we have is when we decide to shed the load on our candles and use generators to watch television.

I am going to sue someone. All along I have been taking electricity price-evading classes from my township school of evadonomics. Now that there is load-shedding, there is no electricity to evade. What a waste.

However, it is nice to know that even mining magnates have had to stay a day or two without electricity. It would be much better if this guaranteed that the CEO of Eskom too slept without electricity; maybe he would understand the kind of pressure he puts us under when the Eskom bosses cut off our electricity while not forgetting to claim their bonuses (which could pay off our debts).

This is not to say that I think some sections of our society must live on freebies, but it’s because the executives of Eskom are already doing that. But electricity has done very well by turning the screws against those who continuously cut us off. Is this sheer luck, or bad news? I think it’s a bit of both.

I am not even going to talk about those three Cabinet ministers who were correctly fired in Polokwane. I am talking here of Alec, Phumzile and Thiboz. Thabo Mbeki is worse — he has nerve: depriving us of electricity and then later apologising. Apology, my foot! I bet he in Pretoria does not suffer the same fate as all of us. No wonder he was fired in Polokwane and there were no T-shirts or night vigils, and certainly no songs.

Everyone is hoping that Eskom must find a solution to this load-shedding. I do too. Especially now that I am suffering from double load-shedding — that of electricity cut-offs and the real load-shedding. So desperate are some of our fellas to end load-shedding that they have started advising Eskom to increase prices, for that matter. What, prices? Now, there I disagree.

Load-shedding or no load-shedding, I remain vehemently opposed to any electricity price increases — not as long as Eskom executives still rake millions in bonuses. In fact, had Eskom executives not been busy bonusing they could have spent the money they took to build more power plants, but no, capitalism could not let them consider anything else but their stomachs. Now they are told to come and take money from us to cover their greed and incompetence. No ways!

Being a militant member of the movement, I will protest against electricity price increases even before they are proposed, to ensure that no such thing is done. I will strike, even if I am alone. I know very well that those who suffer from electricity cut-offs will unofficially join me (through stealing it) if you know what I mean.

For those who suffer from power cuts, an electricity price increase will result in university fee increases, food price increases and so forth. And the increase of these things affects the poor more than anyone else. However, if Eskom wants money, it must visit the industrial businesses it has given special contracts and start demanding more money. It must also, stop giving — undeserved — bonuses to its executives and if possible, it must take back those that it has already given away!

Phew! I have finished this column. This is sheer luck. Now that I have suffered, I agree with those who say power to the people, but not through a plug! God bless Eskom.