As the Madibeng Local Municipality embarks on a debt collection campaign to cut off defaulters’ electricity supply, some business owners in Brits, North West, claim they are unfairly targeted and are demanding to be reconnected, saying they are up to date with their payments.
The debt collection campaign dubbed “Operation Patela Madibeng,” to switch off electricity to residents, businesses and government departments who owed the municipality more than R600 million in unpaid rates, got off earnestly this morning.
The municipality said the campaign is part of efforts to improve revenue collection, including the removal of illegal connections, disconnection of services for consumers/businesses owing the municipality, issuing of contravention notices for any illegal land use or non compliant buildings.
But an angry business man, Mooki Prakash, insists that he’s up to date with his bill yet he was cut off: ” I have always maintained a clean bill for my rates and taxes and electricity every single month.
“I’m very disappointed with the municipality services, they have been stealing the money, and now because Eskom has told them that they have to pay R4 million, they start switching off for everybody. That is not fair, their corruption is too high.
“These municipal officials are corrupt, how can they switch off our lights even though we have paid, they are not allowed to do that without any notice. They should have given us at least 15 days notice and alert that they will switch off our electricity not just budge here.
“They are under pressure as they owe Eskom a lot of money, now we have to be affected, I’m very angry. We are not even allowed to pay with cards as they want cash, this is nonsense,” said Prakash.
Bridget Bryant said she is also very upset because every month she gets a water bill stating that she owes the municipality and yet she has a borehole.
“They keep coming to switch my lights off even though I don’t use their water. I’m paying the bill that I don’t even know where it’s coming from, it’s unacceptable. What irritates me the most is that I have to pay for reconnection service of about R2 000 when they switch back the lights, so I don’t know what is going on,” said Bryant.
The business owners appealed to the municipality to switch back their electricity, as it is affecting their operations.
A Member of the Mayoral Committee responsible for Budget and Treasury, Carol Montsho, said no one is immune from being disconnected for non-payment adding that they have closed almost all of Brits business as they are behind with their payments and this affects the municipality which is on the verge of collapse.
“We have switched off most of Brits businesses and residential areas, everyone that owes us, we have witches off. The reason for this is that the municipality is on the verge of collapse, yet we are not collecting and they are sitting on their hands so this campaign is to force everyone to do their parts as much as we are supposed to do our part.
“For now people have been queuing in paying for their services, it’s been very very progressive and wielding good results”, she said.
Asked if government departments and officials would also be affected by the cutting off of services, Montsho said ‘definitely, no one is exempted’.
“Of course we have switched off some of the government buildings as no one is exempted, whether you are an employee of the municipality, government departments, everyone we are going to switch off so they can pay their debts”.
