City of Tshwane Mayor Cilliers Brink has vowed that the City’s credit control strategy code-named Tshwane Ya Tima will remain in force until all those indebted to the municipality settle their accounts.
Brink personally led a team of credit control officials who switched off electricity supply of those who are in arrears.
“The Tshwane Ya Tima campaign has three messages, namely, to thank those who pay for their services as they make things happen and improve,” said Brink.
“The second message is if you consume water and electricity and don’t pay then City of Tshwane is going to cut off those services,” he explained.
“Third message is if you want to make arrangements approach the municipality and do so, don’t wait for the municipality to come and cut off your services,” concluded Brink.
The switch-off campaign started in Pretoria West on Tuesday morning where one business property was found to be in arrears of R3,3 million while the other was found to be in arrears of R3 million.
“In both these cases it was found that electricity meters had been tampered with,” explained mayoral spokesperson Sipho Stuurman.
At property number 1003 in Hatfield the mayor and the credit control team couldn’t gain access to the premises after trying to do so for close to an hour.
It was finally decided that a device called Cherry picker would be used, whereby officials mount inside a booth that elevates them up high to reach the lamp post which supplies electricity to property and switch off the electricity supply.
A guest house in Brooklyn was found to have connected electricity illegally to the amount of R970 000.
In Waterkloof Glen electricity supply was cut off to a property which was found to have been using electricity illegally to the amount of R564 000.
In Elardus Park electricity supply was cut off as the owners were in arrears of R2,3 million.
“This is all a gimmick,” responded President of The Transformation Alliance Abel Tau when Tshwane Talks approached him for comment today.
“Cilliers Brink is doing all this to appease his voter base,” said Tau.
A statement from ActionSA read as follows: “ActionSA fully supports the coalition government’s stance against non-payment of services by consumers as it is crucial for the City to collect revenue to uphold the provision of essential services to its residents.”
Xiluva Party Gauteng Coordinator Norman Mohale responded as follows:” This sudden gesture by the coalition government confirms that it’s not only poor black people that are struggling to honor their financial obligations with the City but the affluent, well-off residents as well.”
“It’s a great initiative, the City is cash-strapped, and it can’t be that people in affluent areas are not willing to pay even when they have the capacity to do so,” said ANC Tshwane Regional Secretary George Matjila.