River Park electricity restored as City Power opts for ‘constructive dialogue’
After engaging with community representatives, City Power decided to restore the electricity supply to River Park and to continue with their meter auditing and disconnection operation.
Nearly five days after River Park residents, including verified customers, were plunged into darkness, City Power decided to restore the electricity supply to the area on June 3 following a meeting with community leaders.
Read more: River Park without electricity after clash with City Power technicians
This follows the power utility’s decision to cut off supply to the area after residents revolted against a planned meter auditing and cut-off operation.
City Power CEO Tshifularo Mashava said that while they condemned the unlawful behaviour of some residents during the cut-off operation, the utility acknowledged the significance of constructive dialogue and had decided to give law-abiding residents a chance to engage.
Also read: River Park residents resist City Powers cut-off operation
The utility’s spokesperson Isaac Mangena noted that City Power and River Park community representatives had an agreement that once electricity was restored, the utility would revisit the area to continue with their initial operation of conducting electricity meter audits, including disconnecting residents who were found to have illegally bypassed or tampered with their meters.
“City Power remains firm that electricity theft, illegal connection and meter tampering will not be tolerated. We will continue working closely with law enforcement and local leadership to ensure compliance and protect our infrastructure,” Mangena noted. He further warned that should their team be met with violence again during their operation, the utility would cut the electricity supply and suspend services in River Park.
Although the utility will revisit the community under strict law enforcement protection, Mangena urged residents to allow City Power teams to perform their duties without interference, and further emphasised that the only way to ensure a continued and reliable supply of electricity was to pay for services.
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