Note to Broadcasters: Please find attached soundbite in English by Luan Snyders
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Rustenburg notes the response received to a council question submitted by the DA regarding the ongoing and persistent power outages affecting several communities.
The response confirms that the instability in electricity supply is driven by a combination of critical factors, including non-functional ring feed systems, ongoing vandalism, and widespread infrastructure damage (see response here and here). These challenges continue to severely impact residents in Wards 42 and 18, leaving communities without reliable access to electricity.
While the DA welcomes the municipality’s acknowledgement of these issues, it is deeply concerning that residents are still subjected to prolonged and recurring outages without urgent and effective intervention.
Reliable electricity is a basic service and not a privilege. The continued failure to stabilise supply undermines economic activity, disrupts daily life, and erodes the dignity of affected communities.
The DA therefore calls on the Rustenburg Local Municipality to take immediate and decisive action, including the following interventions:
- Urgent restoration of ring feed systems: The immediate repair and full activation of all non-functional ring feed connections must be prioritised. A functioning ring feed network is essential to ensure alternative supply routes and minimise outages during faults.
- Infrastructure protection and anti-vandalism measures: The municipality must strengthen security at substations and key infrastructure points, including working with law enforcement and implementing technology-driven monitoring systems to combat vandalism and theft.
- Rapid response maintenance teams: Dedicated rapid response units must be established to attend to faults in real-time, reducing downtime and ensuring faster restoration of electricity supply.
- Audit and upgrade of ageing infrastructure: A comprehensive technical audit of the electricity network must be conducted, followed by a phased upgrade of ageing and damaged infrastructure to improve long-term reliability.
The DA will continue to hold the municipality accountable and push for practical, implementable solutions that restore stability to the electricity network.
Residents of Rustenburg deserve a municipality that delivers reliable services and responds with urgency to critical infrastructure failures.