Daily Sun (May 28 2015) - THE PICTURE tells the story of a community that lives in fear.
While they have light in their shacks, evil cables lie at their feet like poisonous snakes.
WHILE ELECTRICITY CHASES AWAY THE DARKNESS, IZINYOKA CABLES BRING DEATH!
“We take this risk because we want a better life. We need electricity and RDPs but we’re being ignored,” said Sivuyile Myekeni (25) who lives in Airport Valley squatter camp near Walmer, Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape.
“When President Jacob Zuma was here before the elections he didn’t even come to our kasi. He was taken to RDPs . . . but the crisis is here!”
Residents risk their lives every day when they walk over a web of izinyoka lines as they carry buckets of water from the communal tap.
Myekeni said people risk their lives and go into the sub-station.
“They connect the electricity and they don’t think of the explosion. People hire them for different prices but usually it’s about R150 for a connection to a shack,” said Myekeni.
“In 2010, the municipality relocated us here from a flood zone,”
Phumeza Hute (41) told Daily Sun.
“Since we got here seven people have been electrocuted. Kids play on the lines and some people trip on them when they’re drunk.”
She said they suggested having the lines go over their shacks.
“But most of the people said no because they feared their shacks would burn down.”
For the past two years, there have been regular protests against poor service delivery and one of the main demands has always been electricity.
“About R100 million is lost every year to izinyoka and we have started programmes to fight them,” said municipal spokesman Mthubanzi Mniki.
“We have put electric boxes and poles in the area but electrifying shacks is just a temporary measure. We will remove the electric boxes once RDP houses have been built.”
He said there is an ongoing programme to cut off illegal connections.
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