Load shedding interrupts Ramaphosa's speech at local government summit

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa's speech at the local government summit was interrupted by load shedding earlier on Wednesday.

He was addressing councillors, mayors and leadership on how fights often come about when leaders have opposing views.

Ramaphosa had just finished speaking on how the fights turn violent, when the lights went out.

In a bid to save face, Ramaphosa joked about being given lessons on how to deal with load shedding.

"I must say, I am sorry about that. This continues to be our biggest challenge as you all know," he said.

He noted how load shedding impacts on business and disrupts the livelihoods of people.

Stage 3 load shedding continues to be implemented at midnight to 4pm daily until Thursday.

Stage 4 load shedding will be implemented daily during the evening peaks between 4pm and midnight.

Ramaphosa has conceded that there is no quick fix for load shedding.

In his weekly newsletter, Ramaphosa said government was making progress in the implementation of the additional actions he had announced in July, even though the effects may not be immediately felt.

Meanwhile, three senior staff at Eskom’s Koeberg Nuclear Power Station have been suspended with full pay for poor project management, inadequate contract management and a lack of financial discipline, as an independent investigation continues into problems that led to delays in completing the steam generator replacement project.

Eskom on Tuesday briefed the joint portfolio committee on issues concerning the nuclear power plant and what led to the suspensions.

IOL