Eskom have warned of capacity constraints throughout the winter season – Image via Adobe Stock
‘No power, no problem,’ says Eskom, Twitter up in arms
Eskom, believe it or not, has shared tips to beat the load shedding blues, which the Twitter streets have not taken lightly.
Eskom have warned of capacity constraints throughout the winter season – Image via Adobe Stock
In a very unexpected twist of events, Eskom suggested “four tips on how to beat load shedding blues.” Social media, especially Twitter has since not taken lightly to the power utility, saying they should focus on “how to do their job” and lay off “embarrassing” statements.
Eskom shared a University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Information and Communication Technology Service’s (ICTS) “how-to” piece where they added that, “losing power doesn’t necessarily mean losing productivity.” This really drove a nail into many affected South Africans who are unable to do their jobs or basic things around the house due to load shedding.
“Load shedding is back, and nobody’s happy about it. But unless you have the money for generators, solar installations, or other expensive alternatives, the reality is that you are at risk of losing power for periods of time until the national grid is stable again,” the article read.
“In our tech-driven world, it’s really disruptive to have a few hours without electricity. But losing power doesn’t necessarily mean losing productivity. In this article, we look at some key strategies for minimising the blow of load shedding, while also making the most of the electrical downtime,” it added.
What Twitter users had to say about their suggestions
“If you’re going to tweet this it’s better not to tweet at all. It’s embarrassing,” said one user
Another user decided to fire back at Eskom with tips of his own:
“4 tips on how to run Eskom, 1: Do your job, 2: If you are not qualified for the job, get out, 3: Don’t give bonuses at all, you signed the T’s and C’s of your salary when applying for the job, 4: No Eskom employee should have a generator in their house, they must know how we suffer.”
In reply, a user said that if Eskom employees did have generators in their home, it would be criminal.
Eskom clearly made a big mistake citing that productivity does not have to be lost because there was no hope thereafter:
“Not losing productivity? The entire GDP is being affected. Close your twitter account instead of feeding us this nonsense,”
“Not losing productivity? Computers use power. Machines use power. During those times it’s all off and not working. That means all work is standing still,” said another user.
“Stop telling us how to deal with load shedding. My word; if you spend this amount of time resolving the issues, we could have been world-class. You need bailouts; you need more from us as consumers – how about, do your job – we are already paying,” added a user.
Eskom’s suggestions included the words ‘no power, no problem’
While Eskom’s suggestions included investing in the right equipment, knowing your load shedding status and being smart with electricity, it also cited the words “no power, no problem” which of course did not go unnoticed.
The State-Owned Enterprise, by means of sharing and suggesting the UCT article, not only encouraged people to use their talents to try and find a solution to load shedding but also said that if their guideline is followed, it would be “easier” for one to handle load shedding.
“No power – no problem, load shedding has made South Africa an interesting and unpredictable country to live in. And while we can direct all our fury at Eskom and others we deem responsible for the crisis, anger alone won’t solve the problem,” the article read.
“If you’re an engineer, inventor or some other type of innovator, we hope that you can apply your talents to creating some outstanding solution that will assist our country in its hour of darkness. But even if you can’t make a huge impact, you can at least follow the basic advice outlined above – which will make load shedding easier for you,” it added.
