Carrying candles and glass bulbs, members of the 6th of April movement protested rampant power outages before the cabinet. The protest came in the wake of ten demonstrations across Cairo and other governorates in recent days in response to power outages across the nation. If power cuts persist, activists are threatening further escalation.
The 6th of April protest lasted nearly an hour and half and was controlled by heavy security.
Ahmed Maher, the movement's coordinator, reminded the public that electricity is the foundation of the infrastructure commonly promoted by the National Democratic Party. Maher also said the ongoing dispute between the petroleum and electricity ministries over exporting gas to Israel was expected. The 6th of April, as well as other opposition movements, denounced that exportation.
In related news, Mohamed Hussein Ashour, managing director for North Cairo Electricity Distribution Company, said power cuts at Shubra al-Kheima and al-Tagammu al-Khamess are caused by low-voltage cable faults. Mahmoud Sami Sultan, managing director of South Cairo Electricity Distribution Company, said medium-voltage cable faults have led to 25-minute power cuts.
Abdel Sattar abu-Ras, managing director for Middle Egypt Electricity Distribution Company, said outages in homes are due to the excessive use of air-conditioners, but that companies will, nonetheless, fix them immediately.
The 6th of April movement will hold a conference called “Change… Points of view” at the press syndicate next Saturday. The conference will discuss participation in, or the decision to boycott, the upcoming parliamentary elections.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
