Gerdview resident without power for 23 days
Kruger said that a municipality official had requested a bribe of R3 000 from her in order to hasten her reconnection.
Susan Kruger, a resident in Gerdview, expressed her frustrations after going more than 23 days without power.
Kruger lives on Virtop Street and is one of several residents who have been negatively impacted by a week-long or longer power outage.
Rather than having to give away more food, Kruger said she found alternate ways to keep her fridge running.
“I don’t believe in wasting food, so we distributed it to friends, neighbours and coworkers before it went bad,” said Kruger.
She said, “I have a gas stove to boil water and make baths, but it gets hard to navigate the house in the dark.”
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Kruger said their safety is compromised since the security system does not work.
“My husband too feels unsafe and leaves early for work. At this point, our alarm systems are not working,” said Kruger.
“Although this is the first time our cable has been stolen, we believe that Ekurhuleni is failing us. Why are they taking so long to connect us and replace our cable?”
Kruger said that a municipality official had requested a bribe of R3 000 from her to hasten her reconnection.
“Why are we required to pay a bribe when we have already paid our municipal bills? Is this how city officials conduct their business, taking advantage of a resident’s desperation?”
“Our home insurance company informed us that they cannot repair the cable for us since it is state property.
“It appears like no one knows what is going on when we call the call centre. We think there is a communication gap between the MMCs and other officials. Everyone seems to be working alone,” said Kruger.
Ward 92 Clr Kade Guerreiro said communication from the energy department is non-existent.
“Six businesses have been without power for more than 10 days. Other communities experiencing power-related problems include Klopperpark, Elandsfontein and Marlands,” said Guerreiro.
ALSO READ: Local community battles with power outages
“Residents desperately need power. They can even pay to get it fixed on the spot. Residents of Elandsfontein protested near Barbara Road out of desperation,” he said.
Guerreiro advised residents to keep filing reports via the Siyakhokha app or WhatsApp or the call centre number.
Text ‘Hey Siyakhokha’ to 060 667 7177 to get connected to the Siyakhokha WhatsApp Business Channel.
City of Ekurhuleni spokesperson Zweli Dlamini said it is important that cases of bribery be reported to the authorities so that they can be investigated.
“Before we can investigate any matter, we need to have information.
“People who do not trust that we can investigate our own, they can report such acts to the police, public protector, hawks and any other relevant authorities,” said Dlamini.
He also denied the speculations that contractors are not paid by the municipality hence repairs often take long.
“Contractors are paid for the work they have done. Yes, there may be delays in some instances, but we always try our best to pay suppliers within the stipulated period.
“A delay in payment can be caused by many things including late submission of invoices by the service provider,” said Dlamini.
