Calamitous times for City Power contractor

Electricity is a basic right that we need in our daily lives. For many years load-shedding has become a weekly if not a daily part of our vocabulary in the Greater Eldorado Park community.

The anger that some of us experience is immense when coming from work and there are no lights on in the streets, having to spend unnecessary money on takeaways and even worrying about food which might perish in refrigerators.

This is a clear indication that electricity is an essential when it comes to our basic needs. What about the families who are unable to afford to buy takeaways, where does that leave them?

When the upgrading of the substation started, many people from the community thought that their prayers were answered and they would experience less of this inconvenience. Little did they know that those dreams and prayers could possibly go unanswered.

On July 3, the mayor and councillors from different political parties visited the Hopefield and Eldorado Park Substations, where construction work has stopped.

These councillors represent the Section 79 Oversight Committee; the City Manager; representatives from the Board of City Power; as well as the Member of the Mayoral Committee for Environment and Infrastructure Services.

According to the mayor’s office, the two substations highlight the corruption that takes place at City Power as well as the poor governance.

A contract worth R168 million was awarded to a City Power contractor, as well as a R44 million contract for the Hopefield area, where an estimated R1.5 million worth of work has been done.

This was for a new substation to be built in Eldorado Park, but the contractor has failed to deliver, despite the fact that he had already received R66 million from the city.

Two City Power officials, who were project managers, have already been suspended and a criminal case has been opened with the South African Police Services, this is according to a statement that was released by the mayor’s office.

According to the mayor’s office, residents of our community are sick and tired of the countless power outages they experience and it is vital that we turn this sad state of affairs around.

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News site 1: Westside-Eldos Urban News, News site 2: Soweto Urban News