Johannesburg - A community of mostly pensioners pleaded for help. The ANC never replied to their e-mails. The DA said they couldn’t interfere because this was a private matter. As a last resort residents of West Village, Krugersdorp, contacted the EFF.
They had been forced to sign for their prepaid meters to be replaced with conventional meters by West Rand Power Distributions, a private company that supplies electricity to the area, they said. The EFF’s Gauteng spokesman, Patrick Sindane, and his team were assisting the about 300 white families.
“When they contacted us, I knew there had to be a real problem,” said Sindane. “We don’t need a government that allows private companies to pressure our people, especially sick pensioners who depend on oxygen machines to breathe,” he said.
Walking through West Village this week, accompanied by John Barnardt, the community leader, and other residents, Sindane said people here were now selling their belongings to pay for electricity and about 15 homes went without power because they couldn’t afford it.
“The residents were saving money when these conventional meters were not there, and now their bills have increased from between R800 and R1 000 per month to beyond R1 000 to R5 000. And before the conventional meters were installed, the residents had to make a down payment of R1 500. This is robbery without violence,” said Sindane.
The community had suffered long enough, and it was unfortunate that they could not get help from the ANC and DA, Sindane said. “I wrote a letter to Mogale City and gave them three days to respond. They didn’t, so we took a decision to stage a sit-in at the council building this week. They were forced to listen… we made them aware that this is one struggle we are going to pursue.”
Barnardt said: “Hats off to the EFF, old folks and young here will vote for people that believe in them.”
Wheezing through an oxygen mask, Henk Pelzer, a resident at West Village with emphysema said: “We want our prepaid meters back, we can’t afford this electricity.”
In a meeting yesterday with Mogale City, West Rand Power distributions, Eskom, West Village residents, and the EFF, a decision was reached to put back the prepaid meters.
A technical team has been put together and will start on Monday to evaluate the meters and will give feedback on October 28 on how and when the process will be carried out.
Saturday Star