SEDIBENG. – As promised by the Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) the delayed December salaries of its employees started being paid yesterday.

Sedibeng Ster had reported earlier this week that if the situation is not saved, a bleak Christmas awaits the employees of the municipality after a memorandum was issued on Monday saying that their December salaries would be paid late as the municipality is facing financial challenges. In the memorandum, it was said that the non-processing of the salaries was based on Eskom having attached the municipality’s bank account. The national electricity supplier successfully applied for the attachment of ELM’s bank account early last month.

“Emfuleni municipality is currently indebted to Eskom to the amount of R5.3 billion despite several litigations brought by the power utility since March 2018 to get the municipality to service its account,” Eskom said in a statement early last month.

Yesterday while addressing the media ELM Mayor, Sipho Radebe said that it took the intervention of Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi and his EXCO, for Eskom to agree to release the attached municipal bank account. Radebe said that they have sent a letter of commitment to Eskom assuring it that they will be dealing with the issue of the money owed to the company.

“ It is well known that 53% of the people in this area are unemployed, thereby making it difficult for them to pay for services, hence we have a problem with revenue coming up. We are glad however to say that we are improving from worse to better,” Radebe said.

He also promised to engage business people in the area to find a suitable way forward.