Dear Hon. Dr. Ramokgopa,

We write to you today as the Sedibeng Chamber of People with Disabilities, alongside the ordinary people and small business owners of Sedibeng and Midvaal. This letter is a cry from the heart—an appeal for urgent attention to the suffering our communities are enduring due to relentless and unexplained power outages.

Over the past three days, we have faced electricity cuts ranging from 4 to 12 hours a day, without warning, without clarity, and without any communication from Eskom or the municipality. We are left in the dark, both literally and figuratively.

Our faith in your leadership still stands—but so too does our pain. What we are experiencing is not just inconvenience. It is desperation, fear, and loss of dignity.

Here are just a few examples of what ordinary people are going through:

1.      People Living with Disabilities – A young man in De Deur, paralyzed from the waist down, is unable to move because his wheelchair battery has been flat for days. His caregiver is now forced to lift him manually to the toilet and bed—an undignified and painful experience for them both.

2.      Home Dialysis Patient – A woman in Meyerton, who depends on a dialysis machine, cannot get treatment when there is no power. Her life is now at daily risk, and her family is terrified.

3.      Mothers and Children in the Cold – With the current cold front, countless homes are without any source of warmth. Mothers are wrapping their babies in layers of clothing and blankets, hoping they won’t fall ill. Some have no means to boil water or cook food, and paraffin stoves pose serious health and safety risks.

4.      Elderly and Bedridden – Elderly people in Savanna City are sleeping in freezing rooms without heaters. A grandmother of 82 years told us she has not bathed in three days because the geyser is off and boiling water on a stove is impossible without electricity.

5.      Small Business Owners – Spaza shops, bakeries, and informal traders are losing stock daily. One disabled woman who sells cold drinks and meat from her garage lost over R3,000 in spoiled goods due to these blackouts. She is now in debt, with no way to recover.

Our humble request is simple and fair:

We ask that Eskom, under your guidance, urgently provide a clear and consistent load reduction or shedding schedule for Sedibeng and Midvaal. Let us plan. Let us live with dignity. Let us take care of our children, our elders, and those whose lives depend on electricity.

We also urge you to take our message seriously on behalf of the angry, grieving, and exhausted business owners who have been left without answers. This is not just bad service—it feels like abandonment.

Electricity is a right to dignity. It is a right to life. And in winter, it becomes even more critical for survival.

Our Petition Requests:

A formal response to this letter within 5 working days.
A clear, public load management schedule for Sedibeng and Midvaal.
A designated community liaison to respond to urgent medical electricity needs.
The possibility of establishing community warming centres for vulnerable residents during winter.
Should our plea be ignored, we will be left with no choice but to demonstrate peacefully at Megawatt Park, bringing with us the very people whose lives hang in the balance—our wheelchairs, oxygen tanks, and cold children—because if we cannot charge and warm ourselves at home, then we must come to where the power is.

We write not in anger, but in deep sorrow. Please, hear us.

Yours faithfully,
The Sedibeng Chamber of People with Disabilities
On behalf of:
The people of Midvaal and Sedibeng 
Mr zicelo 0604153063 or Tsidiso Nyide 0788025530 

Address: 8227 Carlisle Crescent, Savanna City 7601 | Wald Crescent, Savanna City, Ext 4, Meyerton, Gauteng 1884 

Phone: 060 415 3063 | Reg No: 2025/396149/08