A good friend of mine who runs a bakery in Zomba posted on her WhatsApp status that she had to throw away some already made cake dough because as she was about to put the dough in the woven, the power went off. A few days ago, I wanted to have my hair done but I couldn’t because most hair salons were closed because there was no electricity. Those that were still open and were using gensets, are charging an extra fee.

Another friend of mine, who runs a construction company, says for the past week, he has been unable to meet his clients’ demands and project timelines because he is unable to provide materials such as steel window frames due to the persistent power cuts. He says in some cases, he wakes up at 1 am to do the welding so that by 4 am when the power goes off, he at least has done something.

The maize mill in my neighbourhood is oftentimes closed yet there is always a long queue of women who come to mill their maize.

Then there are countless other businesses that have completely shut down because of unreliable power supply. I have not even touched on the lives that might have been lost as the power went off while a patient was on an operating table. It is basically impossible to plan a day without having those plans thrown out of the window because of power cuts.

Hearing authorities from Escom, Egenco, and Power Marketing Limited speak; one is left wondering if at all power blackouts will ever end. Nobody is taking responsibility for the mess Malawians are facing. Everyone, from politicians to the utility institutions, is caught in a showdown of pointing fingers at each other without really saying what measures are being put in place to ensure blackouts end.

The political leadership blames the past regime. Which we can understand. But how many years has the Tonse government been in power? Two years. Two years is enough time for any government that is willing to turn around things to do so. Tonse government found the mess, yes, but it is not impossible to clean the mess. Isn’t this what the Tonse government preached during the campaign that they will clear the rubble? Some of the rubble is what is causing persistent power outages.

As for Escom, Egenco and PML, especially Escom, I have no sympathy for this institution. Escom allowed itself to be used by politicians. Escom in the past willingly provided a conducive environment for politicians to mess up the institution. It, therefore, does not make sense for Escom to be apportioning blame to others. Apart from the problems that have risen due to unbundling, Escom knows the deeper causes of the problems the institution is facing. What Malawians like my friends I have mentioned above whose livelihoods depend on electricity want to hear is not who is messing up but rather what are you doing to stop these power blackouts so that life returns to normal and are able to make ends meet.

Enough of pointing fingers at each other; give us electricity.

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