Organisers of the Electricity Tariffs Must Fall and Stop CoCT movements have slammed the City of Cape Town for not caring about mense on Cape Flats.
This comes after a march was held in Mitchells Plain last week, where a memorandum was handed over to City officials regarding the high cost of electricity and the burden it places on pensioners and the poor.
Natasha Gertse says people had heartbreaking stories.
“One pensioner came to us crying saying that she spent R1 700 one month for electricity and didn’t even have food in her house afterwards,” she said.
“Another could only afford R10 electricity and that amounted to one unit.
“We handed over the four-page memorandum with 30 000-plus signatures and comments asking the City to assist with the high tariffs prices.”
The City responded to the memorandum yesterday, but Sandra Dicksons from the Stop CoCT says their response “is very arrogant and blunt”.
In the 14-page document, the City explains that Eskom’s 18.6% increase is the primary reason for high krag tariffs and says this increase is not going away and it must be paid.
It says that load shedding also caused massive revenue losses while vandalism and illegal connections have spiked.
“We have absorbed as much as possible to assist our customers. It is vital that the service provision is protected, while qualifying pensioners and indigent customers receive an array of assistance,” the City stated.
Dicksons added: “These types of responses are impossible to oppose and the tone in which this response is written underlines the City of Cape Town’s stubborn resolve not to engage with the public.”
Gertse says the City basically reverted all the raised issues away from themselves.
“In the conclusion they say they answered in detail even though most of the things don’t involve them, and that they can’t help us,” she concluded.
tracy-lynn.ruiters@inl.co.za