Ilembe switches to prepaid water
Prepaid system to solve administrative issues.
The Ilembe district municipality (IDM) took a step into the future by switching to an “intelligent” prepaid water metering system throughout the district.
IDM spokesperson, Zee Ngala said they have already started in Mandeni, Ndwedwe and Zinkwazi and have communicated to the public via relevant community bodies.
A very upset Zinkwazi resident, Tanya Rutherfoord, said her water had been disconnected the morning after having been issued with a prepaid water meter and her and her family were unable to shower.
Rutherfoord said her household had been allotted some water to see them through until the meter could be registered and they could buy prepaid water but this ran out before daybreak.
When she went to the Ilembe municipal offices that morning, she found a notice on the door saying the office was closed for the day.
Rutherfoord said what upset her most is that she had received no prior communication about the project and her entire household was inconvenienced by the unexpected water cut.
She also complained of an array of administrative gripes she had with IDM regarding water services.
IDM spokesperson, Khululiwe Makhaye said the new prepaid system will solve most of the administrative issues by limiting incorrect billing and meter readings and eliminating disconnections due to non-payment.
Makhaye said communication to Zinkwazi residents in this regard has been done through the Zinkwazi Ratepayers Association and the first meeting took place in 2014 at the Ocean Reef hotel in Zinkwazi.
She said the new prepaid meters came with 2 500 liters of water to give people a chance to register to buy more water.
