GCN was inundated with complaints about power outages in Delville last week.
Business owners said it has become difficult to run their businesses in Germiston, as they are not able to meet targets because of the outages.
LamDel Residents Association recently held a meeting regarding power outages and invited the City of Ekurhuleni (CoE) officials and councillors.
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Jakkie Janse van Vuuren, LamDel chairperson, said residents and business owners are being failed by council.
“Once again, the council is failing the residents. As the residents association, we are perturbed by the lack of service delivery and utter level of disrespect the residents are receiving from the council. We are not getting answers from council,” said Janse van Vuuren.
Lambton and Parkhill Gardens residents also added their voices to the concerns.
Some residents said power outages last for longer than a week, with no answers from the energy department on restoration time.
Janse van Vuuren said Ward Clr Alta de Beer communicated concerns to senior officials, including the city manager and the mayoral committee.
LamDel also contacted senior officials and still await feedback.
“The residents have been affected for over two years now, and we can no longer tolerate the ineptness of the council to deliver services we pay for,” said Janse van Vuuren.
De Beer agreed that the power outages are out of control and needs to be addressed.
“We are battling to get feedback from officials. When we do get a response, it is just excuses related to non-availability of parts and equipment. The concerns are submitted to CoE daily and to all levels in the energy department to assist, but little or no feedback is received,” explained de Beer.
She added that these electricity issues are costly to businesses.
“The economic impact of these outages is huge especially during this pandemic. My heart goes out to all the business owners for the losses they encounter due the collapse of the infrastructure and service delivery,” said de Beer.
She said DA members of parliament requested an urgent Nersa audit last year into the Ekurhuleni energy department.
“The audit is now complete and I have requested a copy of the report in order for the DA to consider next steps. I am in constant contact with the city manager and COO offices to get an immediate resolution for the power issues in Germiston, and specifically Delville Business Park that are providing jobs to the communities around the business park,” said de Beer.
Last week CoE issued a statement stating the city was aware of power outages in Germiston South.
“The supply interruption was caused by a burglary that resulted in damage to critical high-voltage equipment,” said Nhlanhla Cebekhulu, divisional head for communication and media relations.
Areas affected were Delville, Parkhill Gardens, parts of Lambton, Tedstoneville and Germiston South and surrounding areas.
Contact the newsroom by emailing: Marietta Lombard (Editor) germistoncitynews@caxton.co.za, or (Journalists) Busi Vilakazi busiv@caxton.co.za
