Ulundi Municipality clamps down on illegal power connections
Only one in seven houses is buying electricity
THEFT of electricity is rife in Ulundi and as a result, the local municipality owes Eskom more than R10-million. Only one in seven houses is buying electricity.
This was revealed on Tuesday by Ulundi Mayor Wilson Ntshangase, who said they embarked on an unexpected raid of the rental cottages around Ulundi and discovered that many people do not pay for electricity.
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“We cannot divert our minimum budget to settle Eskom.
That is why we initiated this programme to encourage residents to pay for electricity, and also to disconnect electricity when we find any wrongdoings,” said Ntshangase.
“Our main aim was to clamp down on illegal connections. “Transgressors are urged to report to our offices to reapply for reconnection.
They must pay for that as we have to buy the prepaid meter boxes. And there are penalties that have to be paid for illegal connections.
“The amount we owe Eskom indicates that many people are not paying for electricity.”
Ntshangase said they disconnect electricity when they discover any wrongdoings.
“After disconnecting the electricity, we will shift our focus to the CBD to check whether or not the shops are all paying for electricity, and then proceed to all the houses around our municipality.
We are in this mess because people are not willing to pay for electricity,” he said.
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