Residents and businesspeople in the townships east of Pretoria have decried the high electricity and water tariffs, saying they are plunging them deeper into financial crisis as they try to recover from the devastation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Blom Lifestyle Restaurant in Nellmapius Extension 4, east of Pretoria, is one of those affected by the tariff hikes, which are now threatening its survival.
Owner Boitumelo Tlou said Eskom was contributing in worsening their trading conditions with such high tariff increases amid the pandemic, which had slowed down business.
“I’m not happy at all with the electricity tariff increase, it is totally a nightmare and Eskom is not thinking about us small business owners,” said Tlou.
Tlou said the cost of electricity was very high as he was already spending more than R800 for prepaid electricity, which did not last him the entire month.
“We are no longer getting free electricity units and as small businesses we are struggling already with Covid-19 lockdown regulations,” he said.
Cynthia Majaneng, who sells fat cakes in Mamelodi East, said she could not believe that she would be paying more for tariffs as she was already struggling.
Majaneng said she had no other option as she relied on her electric stove to make fat cakes so that she could feed her family.
“My business is not making lots of money and I’m spending more than R500 on prepaid electricity right now,” Majaneng said.
She fears that her business might close down.
Pensioner Maggie Hlongwane, 69, said even though the municipality did provide her with free electricity units every month, they often ran out mid-month, forcing her to use her grant money to buy electricity.
Hlongwane lives with her four grandchildren who are dependent on her grant money for survival.
She said her monthly water bill, which she could not afford, was already hovering around R1,500 a month.
“I’m spending money on electricity instead of basic stuff... I’m not happy at all with the tariff increases,” said Hlongwane.
Alfios Phala, 79, said the increases were unfair and made making ends meet a daunting task, especially for pensioners like him.
“We are forced to pay R200 for refuse removal even though our refuse bins are sometimes not even collected,” Phala said.
Phala said that if Eskom and law enforcement agencies dealt with illegal connections it might not need to impose such high electricity tariffs on law-abiding citizens.
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