City Power, supported by the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) and officers from Douglasdale Police Station, carried out a major operation in Kya Sands to remove illegal electricity connections this week.
The utility said the action forms part of ongoing efforts to safeguard residents, protect infrastructure, and reduce power losses that often lead to frequent blackouts.
During the operation, two to three truckloads of cables used for unlawful connections were confiscated, including streetlight wires that had left parts of the area in darkness.
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Residents expressed mixed feelings about the crackdown. One resident welcomed the move, saying the illegal wires were damaging his trees. Another, Rose Mphane, said while she supported the removals, the community remained in desperate need of a permanent solution.
“We don’t have [electricity], and we are suffering. We need City Power to come help us. I am happy that they are here to remove all of this, but we are in desperate need of electricity,” she said.
“We pay R400 every month on top of the R1 500 for registration, and this money goes to individuals, not an entity that will constantly supply us. We have been dealing with this since 2016 or 2017. City Power must pick a day and come talk to us and tell us a way forward because we are really suffering.”
City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena said the illegal connections were not only overloading the network but also fuelling dangerous criminal activities.
@caxtonjoburgnorth City Power technicians walk down a pathway in Kya Sands carrying coils of confiscated illegal electricity cables removed during a disconnection operation on October 1.#LocalNews #caxtonlocalmedia #SA ♬ original sound Caxton Joburg North
“There are people here who have set up their own mini ‘City Power’ businesses, charging residents R1 500 in connection fees and R400 every month for usage. That’s theft, and it is part of the reason City Power is losing billions of rands,” Mangena explained.
He added that the illegal connections had caused extended outages in nearby formal areas and damaged mini-substations.
“Last week, residents and businesses spent nearly two weeks without electricity because of overloading and tripping caused by these illegal connections. They have even written to the Presidency and the Executive Mayor, raising concerns about the constant outages,” he said.
Mangena also stressed the need for law enforcement to act against criminal syndicates running illegal distribution schemes.
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“We have raised this matter with police management so that those syndicates can be arrested. We also believe Home Affairs should join such operations, as there is a high number of undocumented people living here, which adds pressure on infrastructure.”
Despite the challenges, Mangena said electrifying the settlement would ultimately benefit the City. However, he noted that the area’s dolomitic ground and history as a dumping site complicated the process.
City Power confirmed that while transformers suspected to be used in illegal connections were not recovered during this week’s operation, past raids had uncovered as many as nine hidden inside the informal settlement.
Mangena said the utility would continue with unannounced operations until the illegal network in Kya Sands was fully dismantled.
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