The City of Johannesburg (CoJ) will no longer tolerate losting millions of rands every year to fraud and corruption with regards to electricity.
City Power has had enough, the entity announced in a recent press statement, and they’re introducing tough measures to stem the tide of electricity theft.
The measures were announced at a media briefing at their headquarters earlier this week. In attendance were the board chairman, Rev Frank Chikane, MMC for environment and infrastructure, councillor Matshidiso Mfikoe and City Power MD Sicelo Xulu.
One of the moves they made was to set up a hotline to enable members of the public to report fraud and graft. The next was to establish the Metering Services Business Unit (MSBU) to deal with meter-related issues, in specific, weeding out tampered meters.
Other electricity issues that plague the city are illegal connections and cable theft.
“The corruption-busting plans form part of our revised business mandate,” City Power in a press statement said.
According to MMC Mfikoe, from June this year City Power will be adding other energy sources, such as solar power and gas, into the mix. This will especially benefit residents of informal settlements, who are to be provided with gas stoves, gas cylinders and solar geysers. Rev Chikanse said the strategy is a perfect demonstration of City Power’s zero tolerence to fraud and corruption going forward.
Criminal cases opened against electricity thieves
To date over 850 cases of cable theft, malicious damage to property and illegal metering — both in domestic and business properties — have been reported to the police since the start of 2015, according to Rev Chikane. The police acted quickly to arrest 780 suspects. Of these, 274 people have been convicted. Fifteen of City Power’s own employees have been implicated. He explained that fraud and corruption depends on collusion among contractors, customers and entity employees.
“Meter tampering and illegal connections are not victimless crimes,” he said, adding, “they constitute theft on a massive scale against the ratepayers of Johannesburg.”
“These acts amount to theft against poor communities — millions of rands lost that could otherwise have been invested to refurbish ageing infrastructure and provide basic services are being diverted by such acts, which only serves to line the pockets of corrupt individuals.”
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