Hundreds of families left without power for weeks

Residents from Pebble Falls Lifestyle Estate in Comet are once again in the dark because the complex electricity account is in arrears.

According to residents, they have been without electricity since April 16, which has affected about 900 people.

Mona Visagie, who owns one flat, says the issue has been continuing since the beginning of the year.

“Every month, the municipality cuts us off and then they expect us to pay extra to be reconnected. We all suffer because some people don’t pay.

“This puts us in an uncomfortable position. My son is in matric and needs electricity. He cannot use the Wi-Fi to do his schoolwork and it is inconvenient.”

One tenant, Patience Fasasi, said she was looking for another place to stay because of the electricity situation, which she described as unbearable.

“I am considering moving to Windmill Park, even though I work in Boksburg North. I am really happy at my place, but it is not nice to be constantly without power,” she said.
Another tenant, who wished to remain anonymous, said they had lost a lot of food and groceries because of the power outages.

Ekurhuleni responds
City of Ekurhuleni (CoE) spokesperson Zweli Dlamini said the city followed due process per their credit control policy.

“Pebble Falls fell in arrears when they failed to pay their account on or before their due date. The month in question is March. They did not pay the bill due on March 25, which is R959 331.

“Because of non-payment, on April 3 a pre-termination notice was sent for the same amount, reflecting and explaining that failure to pay the required amount or making necessary arrangements will lead to disconnection of services.

“After the pre-termination notice sent upon the lapse of the 14 days, their electricity was disconnected as per the disconnection date on the disconnection notice (April 16),” said Dlamini.

Dlamini said the body corporate responsible for Pebble Falls reached out to the city office on April 3 requesting payment arrangements because of financial difficulties.

“We acknowledged their request and required them to pay R827 196.46, which is their current bill for April.

“They managed to pay R270 000 on April 4. On April 16, we received a communication from the body corporate that they have received funds and only a few documents are required from them to secure the loan.

“However, they were requesting an extension to finalise the loan agreement. We did not give this extension because we have already the past months given them such extensions.

“The letter stated the funds are available but to date, they have not made the additional R557 196.46 required to make arrangements with the city,” he added.

Dlamini said electricity would be restored to the premises upon receipt of the required amount and arrangements signed by the body corporate.

The Boksburg Advertiser is awaiting comment from Pebble Falls.

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