By John Ikani
South Africa’s government is set to launch an urgent appeal against a court ruling that hospitals, schools, and police stations should be exempted from power cuts or provided with alternative sources of energy like generators.
In a statement on Twitter, Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan said the government’s decision was aimed at averting any undue risk to the national grid at a time when it was making efforts to end load shedding.
The prolonged power cuts, which last for up to 10 hours, have had a detrimental impact on businesses and public services, causing significant disruptions to the daily lives of South Africans.
The government was ordered by a high court to “take all reasonable steps” within 60 days to ensure that hospitals, schools, and police stations are not adversely affected by the power cuts, following a lawsuit brought by trade unions and opposition parties.
Analysts predict that the ruling would result in substantial financial costs for the government and that it would be difficult to enforce.
