Soweto residents to take Eskom to court

COURT ACTION: RESIDENTS CHALLENGE NOTION THEY ARE REFUSING TO PAY

Hundreds are challenging the notion they are refusing to pay.

Power utility says it is owed R18 billion in unpaid bills in Soweto alone, out of a total arrears of R40 billion.

Hundreds of Soweto residents, led by the Lungelo Lethu Human Rights Foundation (LLHRF), are planning to haul Eskom to the High Court in Johannesburg to stop the utility carrying out what they say are arbitrary and discriminatory electricity disconnections.

LLHRF intends asking the court to compel Eskom to set up a fair and independent tribunal to adjudicate the complaints. Summons will be served on Eskom soon.

Eskom’s annual report says it is owed R18 billion in unpaid electricity bills in Soweto alone, out of a total arrears bill of about R40 billion.

President Cyril Ramaphosa recently issued a public letter calling for an end to the culture of nonpayment that worked so well in bringing an end to apartheid, but “has no place in present-day SA. If public utilities like Eskom are to survive, then all users need to pay for the services they receive”.

Speaking at the recent Joburg Mining Indaba, Eskom acting chief executive officer Jabu Mabuza also called for an end to the culture of nonpayment that had contributed to Eskom’s dire financial situation.

By some estimates, just 10% of Soweto residents are paying for electricity.

The notion that Soweto residents are wilfully delinquent is challenged by LLHRF president King Sibiya.

“Our main objective in bringing this court action is to stop Soweto sinking deeper into lawlessness. Social protests are escalating and recently this resulted in the tragic death of two workers,” he said. “We have held numerous forums in Soweto and have heard complaints from residents that Eskom is disconnecting residents without just cause.

“Some residents who are dutifully paying their electricity bills have been disconnected and others who are entitled to free or subsidised electricity are also being disconnected.

“Our request to the court is very simple: establish a tribunal to hear the individual merits of each complaint before deciding to disconnect power from people who are often living in desperate circumstances.”

Soweto is supplied with electricity directly by Eskom, not City Power, which supplies most of Johannesburg. City Power has established channels for resolving customer complaints, largely due to various high court decisions in recent years. However, Eskom is not subject to the same legal requirements and is therefore able to act with impunity when deciding to disconnect customers, said Sibiya.

He added that Eskom’s claim that Soweto residents were R18 billion in arrears required a proper audit.

“Based on our interactions with community organisations in Soweto, we believe this figure may be exaggerated,” said Sibiya. “We are not asking for any freebies for Soweto residents. We support President Ramaphosa’s call for an end to lawlessness and the culture of nonpayment. But we want fairness and transparency in the way Eskom treats its customers in the area.”

LLHRF said an agreement was reached in 1992 between Eskom and Soweto residents. The socalled Soweto Accord outlined an 11-point plan, whereby Eskom would directly provide the township with electricity, thereby avoiding having to pay local government mark-up fees. The purpose of the accord was to bring an end to the rent boycott prevailing at the time and restore a culture of payment within townships. That clearly hasn’t worked.

Sibiya said he decided to get involved when he saw service protests in the township and the destruction of Eskom property and assets. “If we don’t do something about this, the service protests will get worse,” he said.

Some of the key points of the Soweto Accord were:

Residents of Soweto were to receive electricity direct from Eskom with a flat rate of R33.80 per month per household. This flat rate was to be paid until Eskom repaired all meter boxes in Soweto. This was supposed to end the practice of Eskom billing customers based on estimations (a practice that still continues). Residents complain that they were not being accurately billed for services;

Eskom was to embark on a consumer education programme to explain to customers how billing worked and to assist them in reading their meters. The intention was to assist residents in saving electricity;

Eskom, together with civic associations, would embark on educational roadshows. This did not happen, says LLHRF;

Eskom would repair all transformers to assist it in reaching its targets in terms of budget and service delivery. The resultant improvement in service delivery was considered a key component of the campaign to restore a culture of payment in the township. This, too, did not roll out as planned; and

Poor households were to be extended “a duty of care”, meaning government would subsidise those who can’t afford to pay for services they consumed. Today, Eskom was claiming payment from these same poor people (and the municipality), to the tune of R18 billion.

However, Soweto has disputed the R18 billion debt to Eskom.

“We are willing and prepared to pay electricity tariffs at affordable rates, taking into consideration the fact that unemployment and poverty are at extremely high levels in the township,” said Sibiya.

“Eskom’s unilateral approach to disconnections and billing is unjustified, unreasonable and inequitable. Water and electricity are fundamental human rights, as stipulated in the United Nations Universal Declaration.”

LLHRF said the solution is for both sides to engage meaningfully, with a view to drawing up a binding policy framework. A flat electricity rate can be agreed as an interim solution. The interim solution depends on the negotiations by both parties.

“We are also sympathetic to Eskom’s predicament,” said Sibiya.

“There is a debt outstanding. But the chances of recovering this are very low so long as we have antagonism between Eskom and the people of Soweto.”

Some residents who are paying have been disconnected