Outages Fuel Voter Antipathy to South Africa’s ANC, Poll Shows
(Bloomberg) -- More than half of South African taxpayers want to vote the governing party out of power in next year’s elections because of rolling blackouts, a survey shows.
Most Read from Bloomberg
First Republic Bank Is Said to Weigh Options Including a Sale
Credit Suisse Reels After Top Shareholder Rules Out Raising Stake
Ryan Reynolds-Backed Mint Is Bought by T-Mobile for $1.35 Billion
Traders Dash for Cover as Bank Drama Rattles Globe: Markets Wrap
An online poll of almost 1,500 adults last month found that 65% of middle-income earners are seriously considering not voting for the African National Congress in next year’s general elections, according to a BrandMapp-Silverstone report published on the website of Cape Town-based consultancy WhyFive.
Africa’s most industrialized economy has been subjected to rolling blackouts, known locally as loadshedding, since 2008 because state power utility Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. has been unable to meet demand from its old and poorly maintained plants. The daily outages are costing the country as much as 899 million rand ($50 million) per day and hobbling economic growth, with output only expected to increase 0.3% this year, according to the central bank.
“Taxpayers of South Africa are being pushed to the limits, not just of their tolerance, but of their ability to remain resilient, productive and positive about the future,” the company said. “It could be argued that all social revolutions begin at the crest of a wave of urgency, and if that is indeed true, then we have certainly reached that point.”
About 14.7 million individuals in a working-age population of 40.5 million are registered taxpayers in South Africa, according to National Treasury data.
The survey also found that:
As many as 85% of those who participated in the survey feel despondent about the future of the country because of power cuts.
58% of people under the age of 35 are considering emigrating.
72% of respondents said blackouts have negatively affected their work life, with productivity the biggest casualty.
61% of respondents have resorted to using candles to deal with outages.
“We’ve been forced back 100 years,” BrandMapp-Silverstone said. “When candle power is the best solution, you have to know there’s a problem!”
--With assistance from Rene Vollgraaff.
Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek
Naples, Florida, Is Getting So Expensive That City Workers Can't Afford It
72 Hours in Washington: How the Frenzied SVB Rescue Took Shape
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.
