Mayor Hill-Lewis published his “Mayoral Minute” on Friday, which is an old Cape Town tradition where each year’s mayor writes an overall review of the past year.
In his review, the mayor reflected on the country’s serious energy crisis, which is costing the metro millions of rands per day.
Also read: Stage 2 continues, Eskom says it’s not possible to suspend loadshedding
“The challenges in our city are immense, and time passes quickly,” admits Hill-Lewis, who has held the position of mayor for a full year since the DA retained the Cape Metro during the local government elections last year.
“It is deeply frustrating to see how slowly government business often takes and how regulations designed to deter maladministration can result in the delayed delivery of services that people urgently need to live dignified lives,” he said.
One year in, and the mission remains clear to him: “We are building a city in which all can experience the real hope of a future that is safer, cleaner, and more prosperous.”
The city government operates in a social, economic, and political environment that is marked by high rates of poverty, unemployment, economic sluggishness, the lingering effects of apartheid social planning, and protracted national political uncertainty, according to Hill-Lewis.
“Underscoring these challenges is the impact of the worst power cuts in the history of the country, with Eskom implementing record loadshedding for more than 200 days of the year,” he said.
The city previously claimed that, out of 3000 hours, or 1 700 hours, it had shielded customers from more than 60% of Eskom’s loadshedding.
Eskom announced on Saturday that five of its generating units had broken down overnight, forcing the utility to implement stage two loadshedding until further notice.
Hill-Lewis explained that at the time of writing, Eskom was implementing stage 5 loadshedding across the country, which means South Africans are without power for 7.5 hours per day, divided into three separate 2.5-hour blocks.
“This translates into tens of billions of rands’ worth of value lost to the local economy each year,” he said.
Hill-Lewis said that the Steenbras hydroelectric facility in Cape Town had become a shining light in the fight against loadshedding. He said that the facility was the best-performing power station in the country today because of years of good maintenance and management.
“Ending loadshedding will be the biggest stimulus for the local economy, and this has been a central feature of our governance programme this year,” he stressed.
After reflecting on other sectors, namely infrastructure, housing, and homelessness, Mayor Lewis Hill-Lewis concluded his statement with the following:
“Our first year is behind us. Now we look forward with great excitement and anticipation to the year ahead because we know it brings still more opportunity for Cape Town to do more. Our mission is to grow this city’s economy faster, so we can get people out of poverty and into work. We want every South African to be optimistic about the future again and know that South Africa can work because Cape Town is showing the way. As for me personally, well, when you love what you do, it isn’t work. I am committed and excited to do even more in the new year.
It remains only a pleasure and privilege to work for you, the Cape Town public.”
Also read:
What will actually happen if the country goes into stage 8 loadshedding?
Picture: Cape {town} Etc Gallery