Gamalakhe residents urged to buy electricity
Cele said Eskom told him 77 households were fined for tampered meter boxes in Corner House, but only two paid the fines.
No one can stop Eskom from conducting its audit.
Ward 27 councillor Mdu Cele said this to residents during a State of the Ward address at KwaXaba Hall last Sunday.
Cele said that in 2024, there were several Eskom transformer explosions in Bambayi, Mazithanqaze, Mlangeni, Corner House, emaVIP and near the Gamalakhe College.
He explained that this led to frustration among residents as Eskom took a long time to restore power in these areas.
Cele said the transformers were replaced when the government assisted in buying new ones.
“When a transformer explodes, Eskom does an audit in that area to check how many people rely on that transformer and, from those people who rely on that transformer, how many of them pay for electricity. If over 75 people in an area buy electricity, Eskom installs another transformer. But if several households are illegally connected to electricity, Eskom disconnects their power,” he said.
He added that they found that when illegally connected residents have electricity problems, they call private electricians instead of Eskom, which leads to bigger problems.
Cele said Eskom told him 77 households were fined for tampered meter boxes in Corner House, but only two paid the fines.
“Another problem we face is that when Eskom does its audits, it sometimes does not remove tampered prepaid meters, and they don’t pursue fines that need to be paid. However, in some areas, it removed the meter boxes, which is confusing. I told Eskom that what is done on the left needs to be done on the right,” said Cele.
He added: “Eskom told me that issuing fines does not work, so they remove tampered prepaid boxes. I have asked Eskom to meet with Ward 27 residents to hear why they struggle to buy electricity before they start with their audit. Eskom promised to come soon, but in the meantime, I beg you to buy electricity to avoid losing your meter box.”
Meanwhile, Nana Cwele thanked the councillor for the update and also urged Ward 27 residents to buy electricity to avoid living in the dark.
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