I must admit, I’m getting rather used to the Eskom outages. I’ve even started saying that the “Eskom” is out, replacing the need for the word electricity. I draw long baths, light the L’Orangerie scented candles, pop the kettle on the stove and read via my headlamp. It’s a nice bit of downtime.

Cross over a few suburbs though and the moment the Eskom goes out, shit hits the fan. We’re talking about Manenberg, Ottery and Hanover Park, where the gangs rule the Cape Flats. Which is why JP Smith, a Mayoral committee member for safety and security is looking into solutions to limit blackouts “to daylight hours and keeping street lights on during outages”.

Smith said on Tuesday how “patrols and night raids were ‘virtually impossible’ in the dark as officers were unable to see where crime was being committed or who was responsible”.

Over the weekend, the situation was so out of hand we were forced to withdraw in Manenberg.

Michael Jacobs, Mitchell’s Plain Community Policing Forum chairperson, has also said that whilst “no analysis had been done to determine if crime increased during blackouts”, the darkness obviously provides the perfect cover for criminals.

Nothing good happens after dark in Manenberg.

Here’s hoping The City of Cape Town can get this right and have Eskom keep street lights on in those areas during power outages.

[Source: News24]