Calls are mounting for a permanent end to load shedding.

The South African Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) staged a picket on Wednesday night outside the utility’s Megawatt Park in Johannesburg where they expressed their frustration at the ongoing energy crisis.

Protesters demanded not only an overhaul of Eskom’s leadership but the resignation of the entire government. Saftu argues that the current administration’s commitment to neo-liberalism will continue to run down and hollow out the utility, whilst gradually replacing it with Independent Power Producers (IPPs) who will hold the country hostage.

Failure to do proper maintenance, mismanagement and neglect by the ANC led government have been cited as being behind a partly engineered crisis. Saftu believes the ANC intends to privatise the generation sector of Eskom. The trade federation explains that a greater amount of renewable capacity is being auctioned to private producers, whilst Eskom is being pushed to decommission.