Tshwane to open criminal cases over illegal reconnections

The City of Tshwane will open two criminal cases against two properties in Laudium after discovering illegal reconnections during its Tshwane Ya Tima revenue collection operation.

The city’s MMC for finance Jacqui Uys led the City’s finance and electricity teams during the revenue collection operation in Laudium, where various properties were disconnected for owing large amounts of debt.

“We have seen two properties that illegally reconnected themselves after they were disconnected previously.

“We will be opening cases against the two properties,” she said.

Properties owed R2.6m and R1.2m

The properties owed R2.6 million and R1.2 million.

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Uys said illegal connections were a criminal offence and council would use Section 300 of the Criminal Procedure Act to go after offenders and claim compensation.

“We all need to work together for a better Tshwane, we cannot have some benefitting while others need to pay,” she said.

Uys said the campaign targeted all illegal connections and nonpaying customers, including businesses to recoup billions of rand owed.

Uys said Tshwane Ya Tima had had great successes in collection the past couple of weeks and had issued over 300 job cards worth R146 million to collect from debtors.

“The programme is not only about disconnecting, but also helping residents take control of their accounts with various billing days, public meetings to help with billing queries and debt write-off applications,” she said.

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Uys said when residents did not take control of their outstanding accounts, the city would disconnect the property.

Problem was corruption

Laudium Community Policing Forum Sector 3 vice-chair Naeem Nawab said the problem was ultimately corruption.

“These residents haven’t paid in a long time, so why only cut it now?

“So, whenever they are cut off, they pay someone R1 000 to reconnect and there they go,” he said.

Nawab said corruption was the root of the problem.

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“These people would never be able to pay the outstanding amount of more than R2 million,” he said.

Nawab questioned why power to the property wasn’t cut a long time ago.

“It’s been going on for years. The problem remains corruption.

“They must look for the corrupt officials who illegally reconnect the power,” he said.

Nawab said reconnection were done by people who knew what they were doing.

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Various by-law operations conducted this week

Tshwane Metro Police Department spokesperson Senior Superintendent Isaac Mahamba said various by-law operations were conducted this week, with R25 250 in infringement notices issued for contravention of the city’s by-laws and violation of the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences Act.

Mahamba said during the operation, 47 vagrant structures were removed and 32 Aarto Act) notices were issued in Eastlynn.