City of Ekurhuleni gives households with illegal connections some reprieve
The City of Ekurhuleni has given households with illegal connections until the end of the year to take advantage of its rehabilitation incentive designed to connect them to the power grid.
FILE: A view of the City of Ekurhuleni's civic centre entrance. Picture: Thabiso Goba/Eyewitness News
JOHANNESBURG - The City of Ekurhuleni has given households with illegal connections until the end of the year to take advantage of its rehabilitation incentive designed to connect them to the power grid.
This is among the metro's efforts to improve its revenue collection and limit the amount of money it loses to illegal electricity connections.
Ekurhuleni said it's losing millions in electricity theft which includes illegal connections and metre tampering and bypassing.
Finance MMC Jongizizwe Dlabathi said that residents with illegal connections who come forward within the next three months would not face penalties.
"For those that have tampered with our electricity connections and illegal connections, we are giving them three months to come forward. There is no penalty that we are going to charge them so we are waving the penalty," Dlabathi said.
Meanwhile, Dlabathi defended the city’s decision to write off debt owed by households, asserting this measure would enhance the city’s revenue collection over time.
READ: City of Ekurhuleni implements 70% debt write-off incentive for struggling households
Residents can now apply to have 70% of their municipal debt written off, provided their accounts have been in arrears for over a year.
Dlabathi, who was appointed to his position in July, said he was astonished by the high number of households failing to pay their rates and taxes upon taking office.
He said 80% of the city’s revenue comes from businesses, suggesting that a significant number of residents either cannot afford or choose not to settle their bills.
Dlabathi said the city cannot recover financially if most of its customers continue to show reluctance toward paying their rates and taxes.
He added that the metro's debt write-off would come in handy, even though this would see the city losing nearly R15 billion in revenue.
"It's not always good to write off because we are losing money but we believe that this is a balanced approach that makes a commitment for payment arrangements while we give relief," Dlabathi said.
Households who want their municipal debt written off can apply for the incentive between now and June 2026.