We will cut off those in arrears: City of Tshwane

"We have been disconnecting electricity to all the entities, including residential customers, that are owing us in a bid to force them to honour their municipal debt," spokesman Selby Bokaba said in an e-mail to Sapa.

 

"We have increased manpower on the ground to help with the disconnections. We have sent letters of demand to all the entities whose accounts are in arrears."

 

Madibeng municipality owed the city R48.6 million, and had made a proposal to settle their account in instalments.

 

"Our finance team is considering their proposal," Bokaba said.

 

Businesses were in total arrears of R1.36 billion, while total residential arrears came to R2.95bn.

 

Provincial government departments owed the city R339.2m.

 

Bokaba said the education department committed to paying on Tuesday, which would reflect in the city's bank account on Friday.

 

On Sunday, the city said power had been restored in schools that were disconnected because of unpaid electricity bills.

 

"I have instructed that all the disconnected schools be reconnected by 3pm today [Sunday]," city manger Jason Ngobeni said in a statement at the time.

 

On Friday, education department spokeswoman Phumla Sekhonyane said in a statement it had committed to pay the R10m in arrears for affected Section 21 schools by the end of the month.

 

Section 21 schools were responsible for ordering their own stationery, textbooks, and undertaking their own maintenance.

 

Ngobeni said the electricity supply of 38 schools in Tshwane were disconnected last week as a result of the arrears. A total of 140 schools were in arrears.