The DA in Soweto East 1 is calling for calm in Orlando East, where people have been protesting violently over a basic service – electricity. 

For weeks now, the residents of Orlando have been without electricity, and our people cannot have this winter without electricity. We have come out strongly against violent protests and we still condemn them but we understand the residents’ frustration.

This is no longer a strike but looting, as we see Rea Vaya bus station burning. Eskom is in a crisis. It is no longer the baby of the ANC-led government, but that of the entire country. We call on the ANC national government to hold its own accountable and not look for the easy way out.

We believe that we should introduce independent power producers (IPPs). I will therefore still be putting forward a motion at the next sitting of parliament, requesting an urgent debate in the House regarding this matter.

Tsepo Mhlongo, MP