Some residents of Johannesburg with outstanding payments will soon have their services cut off, following an increase in tariffs for water and electricity.
The city of Johannesburg MMC for Finance Funzela Ngobeni revealed in his budget speech for the 2019/20 financial year on 22 May that due to Eskom’s price hike of 9.41 per cent, the City had increased its electricity tariff from the proposed 12.20 per cent to a proposed 13.07 per cent. The proposed tariff increase for Johannesburg Water remains at 9.9 per cent.
Ngobeni noted that around 45.2 per cent of the City’s residents were living below the poverty line and over 900 000 were unemployed. “Ultimately, those worst affected will be the poorest of the poor within our City – facing increased barriers to accessing stable and safe electricity for their households.”
During the budget speech debate at the council chamber on 24 May, councillors from opposition parties argued that the increased tariffs were a great concern for residents and were higher than the current inflation rate. Ngobeni said the increase of tariffs was beyond their control. “Where we were able to control it, we have done that, like in the case of refuse removal. But we could not control the increase of water and electricity tariffs.”
Adding salt to the wound, Ngobeni further stated that City Power and Johannesburg Water were intensifying the cutting off of services for those who could afford to pay but were behind with their payments.
He added that the collection of revenue is at 87 per cent. He said there was an intervention put in place to collect 92 per cent by the end of the financial year.
“We are working the revenue team to have regular open days. We have also taken the decision to take open days to regional offices and to make them available every day.”
The City’s R64.5 billion budget for the 2019/20 financial year was tabled as follows:
• The operating budget, R56.7 billion; capital budget, R7.8 billion and three-year capital budget appropriation requested from the budget was R24.3 billion.
• Diphetogo Programme, R3.5 billion with an operating budget of R1.1 billion for the 2019/20 financial year.
• Environment and Infrastructure, R440 million
• City Power, R2.9 billion operating budget over a period of three years
• Johannesburg Water, R11. 5 billion with a capital budget of R3.2 billion over a period of three years
• Pikitup, R427 million and operating expenditure of R2.5 billion
• Johannesburg Social Housing Company, R874 million capital budget over the next three years
• Human and Social Development Cluster, R1.1 billion with an operating expenditure of R9.5 billion
• Community Development, R321 million
• Health Department, R217 million
• Social Development, R253 million operating budget
• Public Safety, R277 million three- year operating budget and R5.5 billion for 2019/20 financial year
• Economic Growth Cluster, R10.1 billion
• Economic Development, R28 million capital budget, and R169 million operational budget.
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