A group of Johannesburg business owners have lodged a class-action suit against the city over refuse collection.
Representing 42 applicants, the Johannesburg Property Owners and Managers Association (JPOMA) has served the City of Johannesburg and its contracted refuse collector, Pikitup over refuse removal charges it says were backdated to 2018.
According to JPOMA chair Shaun Streaton, the municipality has until April 19 to file a notice of intention to oppose.
The punitive amount was arrived at by a recalculation of refuse backdated from 2018 on nearly 100 different accounts, which they believed to be invalid and unlawful in terms of municipal bylaws.
The applicants are all companies that own rental accommodation in the Johannesburg inner city and are responsible for about 7,333 residential units housing lower- and middle-income households.
Streaton said a further application is being prepared to challenge the same process that the city has applied to sewage charges.
He said his members paid more than R80m to the city every month and that they were disappointed the municipality continued issuing notices of disconnection on back-billed accounts despite promising to suspend any disconnections pending the outcome of the court case.
“In addition, it keeps insisting that our members sign acknowledgments of debt, which we unequivocally oppose.
“The city council has categorically failed in the execution of its duties to keep the city clean and safe, and vital infrastructure such as roads, pavements, lighting and more have been left to crumble. Service delivery is at an all-time low, yet the city charges above-inflation increases year after year for electricity, water and sewer [sewage],” Streaton said.
Streaton says three buildings that are owned by members of JPOMA have been without electricity since March. He said these have been running on rented generators at a cost of R25,000 per day, which includes diesel costs.
“Yet the city tries to balance the expense side of their budget with ludicrous increases, tariff changes and unlawful backdated charges.
“We regularly get calls from the public highlighting that this matter is not isolated to the inner city, and the more we hear, the more we realise the extent of the billing errors and unfair billing,” he said. “One member has had his property converted back to business tariff, despite it being 100% residential.”
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