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WATCH: Emfuleni’s vehicles seized to help pay Eskom debt
Twenty-five vehicles, including police cars, bakkies and refuse trucks, were towed from the Emfuleni municipality's premises.
The Emfuleni municipality’s vehicles are removed from its premises by the sheriff’s office on 1 December 2022. Photo Twitter/Eskom
Eskom on Thursday seized vehicles belonging to the Emfuleni local municipality, after Eskom was granted a court order to attach the municipality’s assets.
According to the FF Plus in Emfuleni, the bailiff seized 25 vehicles, including those belonging to the construction, traffic, parks, sports and power departments.
Eskom obtained the order from the Pretoria High Court in November.
“The electricity generator has started with the execution steps against the municipality to recover some of the municipality debt, including attaching the local authority’s bank accounts and movable assets,” the power utility said in a statement at the time.
ALSO READ: Eskom granted order to attach Emfuleni assets
Videos on Eskom’s Twitter account on Thursday showed various vehicles being loaded onto flat bed trucks.
Watch: Emfuleni’s vehicles seized
“The sheriff’s office officials [are] working on removing Emfuleni municipality’s vehicles from its premises,” read one of the power utility’s tweets.
The vehicles include police cars, bakkies, minibuses and a tipper. Even the municipality’s refuse truck was removed.
Evaton, Sebokeng, Vaal Oewer, Vanderbijlpark and Vereeniging fall under the municipality.
FF Plus councillor in Emfuleni, Gerda Senekal, said service delivery in the municipality will be affected by the seizure.
“The seizure of vehicles has a severely detrimental impact on Emfuleni’s service delivery,” she said.
“Even the intervention by the Gauteng Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) did not improve the situation. Emfuleni deserves better than the ANC.”
Non-payment for electricity
Eskom in September won a R1.3 billion judgment against the municipality over unpaid bulk electricity services.
Emfuleni Municipality owes Eskom R5.3 billion.
The power utility said the municipality had not made any payments to settle the debt, despite several court orders.
Eskom has also served Emfuleni with a summons of R3.4 billion for the non-payment of its bulk electricity supply.
Rand Water
Eskom isn’t the only organisation trying to recover debt from the embattled municipality.
Gauteng water utility Rand Water also obtained an attachment order against Emfuleni in November.
The water board has for years been involved in a dispute with the municipality over debt of more than R500 million.
NOW READ: ‘Service delivery is a joke’: Gatvol businesses to boycott paying rates in Emfuleni
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