Ashraf Mahomed, a homeowner in Montgomery Park, is ‘suffering a critical loss of income at City Power’s hands while I’m unable to work’.
The rental from his home is crucial for him to sustain himself while he fights for his life in Cape Town. He has a life-threatening condition that has left him with only 10% lung function as he awaits lung surgery.
In June last year, his pre-paid electricity wireless device, used to load recharge tokens, stopped working.
“With no replacement available, City Power technicians bridged the meter and connected me directly to the grid.
“They subsequently disconnected my electricity in November, because they said I was getting power via an illegal connection. I have been unable to continue renting my property as a result. Being in the Cape and far from home, this situation has been stressful. I have been unable to draw a rental income, nor have any peace of mind while fighting for my life. I have never felt so stressed or vulnerable.”
He said the entity should have reversed the temporary fix and replaced the device as soon as one became available. He now faces a R13 000 fine for the ‘illegal connection’ and for using electricity that the entity says they are unable to bill for as the usage can’t be calculated. This resulted in losing his small income on which he depends for survival.
“They did this after I logged a fault. I have always paid for my power and am not a thief. Why could they not look at my previous usage and bill me on averages if they could not do a correct reading?
“If this goes to court, I have proof that I have been a law-abiding citizen and can prove my electricity purchases via my bank statements over years. I have been stressed that criminals could see my house was effectively ‘abandoned’ and would either move in or steal what they could.
“I have exhausted every possible avenue, trying to have this sorted out. City Power has point-blank refused to do anything and insists that I pay the fine for bridging the meter, even after they’ve admitted to doing it themselves. It was a simple problem that has become a nightmare.”
“I actually don’t care if the fine is R13 000 or 13 cents, I refuse to pay it when I’m not guilty of anything.”
A replacement device from the entity should have taken two weeks to come, yet was only replaced last week after inquiries from the Northcliff Melville Times forced City Power to act.
There is no clarity on how the fine will be resolved at this stage. Mahomed though is relieved to at least be able to load electricity, and as a result, hopefully, rent out his home again.
City Power was contacted via email on March 11 for comment. Despite several conversations on WhatsApp following up for a response, spokesperson Isaac Mangena was unable to get a report from area managers. He did, however, confirm that a new device had been installed.
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