Illegal electricity connections tackled

In a joint effort, Honeydew Police together with City Power officers and Metro Police went on an operation to disconnect the illegal power connections in some parts of Honeydew and Zandspruit.

The illegal electricity connections, which have been providing power to scores of households in Zandspruit Informal Settlement and some of the homes in parts of Honeydew, were disconnected on Thursday 27 November.

“These illegal connections cause electricity disruptions. Only a certain number of volts are allocated to an area. This means that law-abiding citizens, who pay for their electricity, are often left without any,” said one City Power official who was in the operation.

He added that the illegal connections posed a major safety threat.

“These cables are not put down correctly. If it rains, the ground surrounding the cables becomes ‘live’. Because of this many people, especially children, sometimes suffer electric shocks.”

But this was of little comfort for Zandspruit resident Malerato Keele who said she will now have to scrounge for scraps of wood to cook a meal for her family.

With no employment or fixed income, Keele said she ‘had no choice’ but to get an illegal connection. “Paraffin is expensive, I cannot afford it.”

Keele is among the many residents who allege to have turned to City Power to have legal connections without success.

One of the community leaders Tobby Dubazane confirmed that they have been at loggerheads to have electricity installed in the settlement. She also confirmed that there have been a number of fatalities where children were injured because of the illegal connections. “Some children have even died and there is one who is still in hospital.”

For residents in Ruimsig and surrounding areas this is good news. Anthony Grohovaz, chairperson of the Ruimsig Fourays Resident’s Association, was glad that the operation took place. “Over the past seven years, we have suffered 7 000 hours of being without power because of these illegal connections.”