“People are already paying for electricity which they do not receive from Eskom, now you are telling them that they should go and buy generators. There was also something dismissive about the way he spoke. It showed a strong indication that people should not be complaining, and that is not right.”
Schreiber said the remarks by the premier were “careless” because many South Africans could not afford to buy generators.
Recently TimesLIVE reported that businesses were battling with costs of operating during load-shedding.
Johannesburg-based funeral parlours told TimesLIVE the costs of preventing bodies from decomposing before burials have become a “terrible expense”, while they suffer from constant blackouts and fuel price increases.
Royal Empire Funerals owner Teboho Ditabe said he spent just under R30,000 a week to keep the lights on at three parlours.
Ditabe said the bodies were at much greater risk of decomposition because of the constant load-shedding and load-reduction.
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North West premier slammed for telling businesses to buy generators to operate
The Sona debate got heated on Wednesday as opposition parties slammed Bushy Maape for his remarks about the country’s power crisis
Image: Boitumelo Tshehle
North West premier Bushy Maape has been slammed by opposition parties for saying businesses know the country has a power crisis and should be prepared to buy generators to operate.
Maape made the remarks on Wednesday during the state of the nation address debate in parliament.
“We, as South Africans, are aware that we do not have electricity but we are prepared to buy a generator, to ensure that we operate. That is what we want to hear from South Africans,” Maape told MPs.
He said buying generators should be a business model adopted in the country for businesses to survive.
His remarks caused a stir among MPs, with the DA voicing its unhappiness.
DA MP Leon Schreiber told TimesLIVE Maape’s statement was an “an admission of failure by the ANC that they cannot solve the power crisis”.
“People are already paying for electricity which they do not receive from Eskom, now you are telling them that they should go and buy generators. There was also something dismissive about the way he spoke. It showed a strong indication that people should not be complaining, and that is not right.”
Schreiber said the remarks by the premier were “careless” because many South Africans could not afford to buy generators.
Recently TimesLIVE reported that businesses were battling with costs of operating during load-shedding.
Johannesburg-based funeral parlours told TimesLIVE the costs of preventing bodies from decomposing before burials have become a “terrible expense”, while they suffer from constant blackouts and fuel price increases.
Royal Empire Funerals owner Teboho Ditabe said he spent just under R30,000 a week to keep the lights on at three parlours.
Ditabe said the bodies were at much greater risk of decomposition because of the constant load-shedding and load-reduction.
Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times. Just R20 for the first month.
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