Arthur Greene
Mischievous South African rapper AKA has had enough of back-to-back load shedding, so he’s resorted to trying to enlist the help of the South African-born billionaire Elon Musk.
The award-winning rapper took to Twitter on Tuesday to slam Eskom for the lack of improvement and to suggest a new alternative.
“Surely it’s time to consider an alternative to Eskom in terms of providing power to our country,” he began before outlining the flaws of a monopoly system.
“When you’re the only choice, what incentive is there to deliver? As a monopoly, there are no consequences for poor performance.”
His solution? Richest man in the world Elon Musk.
“Excuse me sir… Elon Musk… I cannot for the life of me understand why the government hasn’t approached you to come help us out with this electricity crisis, but is there any chance you could perhaps do us a solid, you know, with you being born here and all?” AKA politely asked.
AKA’s tongue-in-cheek letter makes a lot of sense. Musk is a powerful tech visionary already committed to energy innovation.
But he shouldn’t hold his breath. Musk famously has little love for his native Mzansi, and barely lifted a finger in the past to help.
Musk was badly bullied as a child growing up in Pretoria, and he left the country as soon as he was old enough to do so, at the age of 17. He rarely mentions his time in South Africa during interviews and unlike other South African innovators such as Patrick Soon-Shiong, he has done little to invest in the country.
On one occasion, Musk’s former school, Pretoria High, reportedly asked him for a donation towards a new stadium. Musk duly sent over R1 million, but it was on condition they never contact him again.
