Haunted by Joburg billing

If you consider that the two words which sum up South Africa today are “incompetence” and “theft”, then you’ll understand why now – with the benefit of at least 1 000km of distance (as the crow flies) from the City of Joburg – I tend to shake my head and smirk at the “pre-termination notice” threats which arrive periodically in our e-mail from that municipality.

The first time that happened, in more than 35 years of living in the City of Gold (how ironic is that, these days?) – and of religiously paying all our bills – we were struck dumb in shock.

According to City Power, we owed R28 290.87. This, believe it or not, was after the installation of a “smart” meter which allegedly is able to “smartly” communicate with a central system and record your consumption.

Apparently, City Power’s smart meters are dof – so they decided to estimate, without taking a single reading mind you, our electricity usage. Hence the R28k debt.

The backwards and forwards (three visits in all) eventually led to the discovery that the smart meter was connected to HQ and was sending information back… but not before we were asked to take a photograph of our meter reading and send that in.

When logic finally settled on City Power and the meter was read, we suddenly didn’t owe them the money. We weren’t expecting much when we sold our house in Northcliff and moved to the coast.

But, lo and behold, the conveyancing attorneys got a municipal accounts clearance and the house was transferred. Earlier this year, I even got a refund from the metro.

That hasn’t stopped City Power sending pre-termination notices to us for money owed. We’re not in the house. So, we’re not going to pay you. That was the gist of an e-mail my wife sent City Power via their website three months ago.

You guessed it… automated response and nothing more. It is the infernal idiotic bureaucracy which you find all over this country – and there’s quite a bit in the private sector, too (ask anyone with a cellphone account) – which contributes a marked degree to “urban rage”.

But what also enrages me is that fact that so many South Africans steal. There is no other word to describe not paying for your municipal services.

Sure, there are plenty of poor people but there are plenty of middle-class people riding the “ANC won’t do anything” wave.

Don’t believe me? Don’t believe that the City of Joburg has written off R9 billion in debt it deems “irrecoverable”?

Then what about the Special Investigating Unit’s finding a year or two ago that uncovered 40 000 fraudulent grants from the National Students Financial Assistance Scheme? That means there are 40 000 families who lied about their financial position to get money to which they were not entitled.

It also means possibly that 40 000 actually poor students couldn’t get a tertiary education. That’s enough thieves to fill the Ellis Park stadium.

We’ve become a country of freeloaders – and it cuts right across all demographic lines. Don’t complain about ANC corruption if you try to dodge your taxes. Don’t complain about dodgy tenderpreneurs if you refuse to obey the law and pay your TV licence.

Having said that, though, I must admit that I won’t guarantee some overpaid, underworked “civil servant” won’t send you a pre-termination notice.