Bassonia residents are demanding answers over municipal billing and electricity supply after a power disconnection highlighted an ongoing R13.6m debt dispute between the City of Ekurhuleni and the City of Johannesburg.

The City of Ekurhuleni has yet to respond to queries surrounding an electricity disconnection that affected residents in Bassonia Rock, Bassonia Estates and Tiffani Gardens, despite repeated media enquiries from the Alberton Record.

The newspaper first contacted the city on August 12 after receiving reports that residents had been left without electricity following the disconnection of a bulk electricity supply linked to an outstanding R13.6m debt between Ekurhuleni and the City of Johannesburg.

A follow-up enquiry was sent on August 18 after no response was received. The matter was raised again with the city on August 26, when its spokesperson indicated that a response would be provided. At the time of publication, no formal response had been received.

Bulk supply cut off

City of Johannesburg spokesperson Nkosana Letjolo confirmed on August 13 that the city had disconnected electricity from the main supply point serving Ekurhuleni due to the debt.

Letjolo stressed that the City of Johannesburg did not disconnect individual residential properties or specific customers, adding that the action was taken at the main bulk supply point serving the municipality.

According to Letjolo, the account is portfolio-managed, and the city had held several engagements with Ekurhuleni to recover the outstanding amount.

He said the City of Johannesburg’s last engagement seeking payment was in March.

“Despite these numerous engagements to have the debt settled, the city was left with no choice but to implement its credit control policy to recover the money owed,” Letjolo said.

Paying residents left stranded

The situation has left residents questioning why they should be affected by a dispute over payments between the two municipalities when they have continued paying their accounts.

Bassonia resident Elsa de Almeida said she was shocked to discover that the power interruption was connected to municipal debt.

“I’ve lived in my house for 23 years. I get my electricity from Ekurhuleni and I pay my rates and taxes to Ekurhuleni,” she said.

According to De Almeida, the electricity was disconnected on August 6, leaving residents initially unsure about the cause of the outage.

“I’m thinking there’s a problem with my electricity because it’s so weird. But in the meantime, we found out there was a notice. They put it on the substation,” she said.

De Almeida said residents later learned that the interruption was linked to financial obligations between Ekurhuleni and Johannesburg.

“We citizens are held at ransom because of this non-payment that doesn’t take place between Ekurhuleni and the City of Johannesburg.”

She questioned why residents who were paying their accounts should be affected by the dispute.

“It’s not the residents who owe Ekurhuleni money. It’s their financial arrangement between these two entities. Ekurhuleni has to pay over.”

De Almeida also questioned the longstanding municipal arrangement in the area, noting that while Bassonia falls within the City of Johannesburg’s broader jurisdiction, residents in the affected area have historically received electricity from Ekurhuleni and paid municipal accounts to Ekurhuleni.

“I don’t understand why there’s a certain section that is falling under Ekurhuleni and the rest is under the City of Johannesburg.”

She said the electricity interruption was particularly concerning because residents had not been given clear warning that they could be affected.

“They came at 14:00 on a Thursday and then we realised we were without power. And then when we started questioning, we got to know it was about this non-payment.”

According to De Almeida, the electricity was restored later that same day following strong opposition from residents.

“Yes, they did, because there was a big pushback,” she said, adding that power was restored before midnight.

De Almeida said she had attempted to raise the matter with Ekurhuleni through social media but had not received a follow-up response.

“He got my cellphone number, got my email address. But I said, ‘You know, I’m never going to hear from you because I know that this is history being repeated,’ and I never got to hear,” she said.

She believes residents should not be held responsible for an outstanding municipal account between two government entities.

“How can you disconnect people when they’re paying for services?” she asked.

Municipalities silent on solution

The incident has raised questions about the financial and service-delivery arrangements between Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni, including which municipality is responsible for electricity supply, billing and payments in the affected areas.

The Alberton Record has asked Ekurhuleni to clarify the amount it allegedly owes Johannesburg, the reason for the outstanding debt, the applicable electricity and billing arrangement in Bassonia, and what steps have been taken to prevent a repeat of the disconnection.

The city has not yet provided answers to these questions.

The newspaper first sent its enquiry to the city on August 12 at 08:59. After receiving no response, it sent a follow-up on August 18 at 10:23.

The newspaper followed up again by phone on August 26 with Ekurhuleni spokesperson Zweli Dlamini, who said he was unsure why the city had not responded and indicated that he would follow up.

He asked the newspaper to resend the enquiry via WhatsApp. The enquiry was sent to Dlamini via WhatsApp at 11:45 on August 26, shortly after the call.

A further WhatsApp message was sent on August 27 at 11:45, requesting feedback, but no response was received.

On September 1, the Alberton Record contacted Dlamini by phone again. He said he was not sure why the city had not responded and that he was following up on the matter, and he promised to get back to the newspaper.

At the time of publication, no formal response had been received from the City of Ekurhuleni. The Alberton Record will publish the city’s response should it be received.