VEREENIGING. – Since early this morning the residents of Bedworthpark have barricaded the Ascot on Vaal road.

The reason, they say, is that they have not had electricity since Monday. They demanded that the Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) officials address them because, according to them, no one has come to them to explain what the problem is.

“We are sick and tired of this situation, no one has come to attend to us. We are paying our rates and taxes diligently, yet we are treated like secondary citizens. When they (ELM) want us to pay they even go to the extent of issuing us with summons but it is difficult for them now to come and explain what is happening. They must be held accountable,” residents said.

When Sedibeng Ster arrived at the scene, Ward 4 Councillor Edward von Bodenstein was at the scene. He also seemed to not know what the problem was until an electricity truck from one of the ELM contractors came over and a technician explained to the residents that there seemed to be a problem with one of the transformers but that they were working on it.

When Sedibeng Ster left the scene, one side of Bedworthpark’s electricity was restored while the other was still without electricity.

Ascot on Vaal is a road that links Gauteng and the Free State and is normally used by trucks to ferry goods to and from the two provinces. Motorists and trucks were prevented from passing on it