Resident spends more than 30 days with no power
Sanja Ninkovic stated that she was not even at home when City Power removed her meter box, leaving her without power and with no explanation.
An angry and frustrated Bloubosrand resident Sanja Ninkovic has been without electricity for a month after City Power removed her meter box.
According to Ninkovic, her meter was working normally until two people – who claimed to be from the City of Johannesburg – came to her house. They opened the box and said the meter had been bridged and allegedly demanded a R2 500 bribe.
She said she refused and noticed that the box was not working as usual after some time. “I reported this three times to City Power after May 23; my last report was on May 29. Nobody had touched the meter and I was loading electricity normally until those guys came to my house on May 23.”
Four months later her power was cut and the meter box was removed by City Power on September 18.
Spokesperson Isaac Mangena said the Randburg Service Delivery Centre (SDC) was aware that the customer’s single-phase meter had been disconnected.
“The customer was disconnected as part of the revenue collection drive that is taking place across the City of Johannesburg, which aims to send a strong message to defaulting customers that City Power will not tolerate non-payment.”
He added the drive was also an opportunity for the power utility to recover the revenue it needed to continue to provide essential services to the city’s residents and businesses.
“The disconnection took place after an audit was done on the customer’s meter.”
According to City Power, the system identified the following buying pattern of the customer:
- May 2023 – R600
- June 2023 – R0
- July 2023 – R20
- August 2023 – R0
- September 2023 – R0
The pattern proved that the box was working normally in May and when Ninkovic reported that she was not attended to. She is now being charged R13 411.19 penalty for a bridged meter which must be paid in full before reconnecting could place.
“After a disconnection is done, a customer is issued with a notice letter that includes full details of the customer and meter readings. On this notice, the customer must report to the depot for further explanation or clarity required by the customer,” said Mangena.
Mangena added that, unfortunately, there is no available payment arrangement for prepaid customers and at no point was the customer ignored despite having three reference numbers of when the call was logged.
Ninkovic’s life has been devastating ever since the disconnection. She lost dozens of food items and had to rely on a gas stove for cooking and boiling water for bathing. She charges her electronic devices, including bed lights at her work.
“It’s big physical and psychological trauma – especially my safety is in great jeopardy. I cannot actually do anything – my life has stopped.”
Ninkovic believes that the first two people who came tampered with her meter box.
Mangena urged customers to be vigilant at all times and only allow City Power contractors with a valid card with the following details:
- A card bearer’s name and surname
- A card bearer’s ID photo
- An expiry date (if the card is already expired, that bearer is not fully authorised to work on the City Power network)
- The name of the company contracted to City Power
- No contractor is allowed to work with another person’s ID card
- Green ID cards are for meter readers and turquoise for meter maintenance or installation.
“If customers are unsure of the legitimacy of the installer, they should call City Power on 011 490 7553/7911 to verify the contractor’s credentials.”
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