By Lehlohonolo Lehana
The City of Joburg is embarking on Operation Buya Mthetho launched by Mayor Mpho Phalatse earlier this month.
It hopes to recoup about R38-billion in unpaid bills But Ian Ferguson, who helps people with their bills, told ENCA that the city should first sort out its billing crisis.
He says numerous claims and complaints are still open and unresolved.
Wednesday’s operations focused on Johannesburg’s region E, which includes Sandton.
According the department of co-operative governance and traditional affairs’ Johannesburg metro profile, region E is the most economically prominent region, but has vast contradictions.
Operation Buya Mthetho, meaning “bring back the law”, had mayor Phalatse join the campaign, accompanied by MMC for safety David Tembe, MMC for environment and infrastructure services Michael Sun, MMC for finance Julie Suddaby and officials and personnel from the Johannesburg metro police department, City Power and Group Forensic and Investigation Services.
Phalatse said she made no apologies for wanting to build a city “that is, among other things, well-run, safe and business-friendly”.
The reality, she said, is that doing so costs money, even if the best people are elected or appointed.
Meanwhile City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena said, based on customer categories, the highest defaulting customers are large power users who owe us about R2.2 billion. The second highest defaulters are businesses, including malls, that collectively owe us about R1.7 billion. Government accounts owe about R170 million.
Mangena added that government departments in arrears included schools and hospitals.
“We are continuing with the cut offs … as you saw this week we were in Sandton and other Region E areas to ensure those businesses and government departments that owe [us for] electricity, among other services, and other rates are disconnected.”
City Power cut off the power supply at the Radisson Blue in Sandton this week due to arrears.
Other defaulters then sprung into action on Wednesday, forking out R6 million owed the city of Johannesburg for unpaid rates and taxes.
Mangena said the power utility would be targeting customers throughout the city in the coming weeks.
City Power has delivered 3 773 pre-termination notices to defaulting customers, of which 1 044 customers had been disconnected to date.
The operation would continue until all the money due was collected, Mangena said, adding the debt recovery would go a long was in funding service delivery.