City Power has issued a strong condemnation of the aggressive and unlawful conduct exhibited by certain residents of Riverpark in Alexandra, who staged a protest on Wednesday morning outside the Alexandra Service Delivery Centre (SDC). This protest was a reaction to a disconnection operation carried out on Tuesday, which aimed to address illegal electricity connections and tampered meters.
The group of protesters blockaded the entrance of the SDC, effectively disrupting operations and preventing City Power teams from addressing service queries and outage calls. Such obstruction not only endangers the safety of employees but also hampers service delivery across other areas.
“City Power will not hesitate to disconnect the entire area from the substation should this unlawful and hostile behaviour continue,” warned City Power CEO Ms. Tshifularo Mashava. “We must be clear: our contractual relationship is with individual account holders—not with collective groups whose legitimacy as customers cannot be verified. Each affected customer is encouraged to visit the SDC to resolve their issues individually.”
On Tuesday, May 27, 2025, City Power’s Revenue Protection Services, in collaboration with law enforcement, conducted a disconnection operation in Riverpark. This operation targeted 470 households with zero electricity purchases and 367 households exhibiting suspiciously low electricity usage, which indicated potential meter tampering. However, violent resistance from some residents limited the number of disconnections that could be carried out.
Despite City Power’s efforts, including the installation of 1,754 smart meters in Riverpark under its meter normalization programme, many residents continue to bypass meters or refuse to pay for electricity. Earlier this year, similar violent disruptions by individuals claiming to represent the community halted the meter installation process.
“As City Power, we will not tolerate acts of sabotage, intimidation, and violence,” added Ms. Mashava. “We are committed to addressing electricity theft, protecting our infrastructure, and safeguarding communities from the dangers of illegal connections.”
City Power remains open to constructive dialogue and community engagement but will not compromise on issues related to illegal connections and meter tampering.
“Customers must take responsibility for the electricity they consume. Failure to do so will result in disconnection, and no amount of threats or intimidation will deter us,” stated the CEO.
Illegal connections pose serious safety hazards, often resulting in fatal incidents. City Power reaffirms its commitment to eradicating these risks—not only in Alexandra but across all areas under its jurisdiction.
In light of the recent events, City Power calls on local councillors to intervene and urge protesting residents to disperse peacefully, allowing normal operations and response services to resume.
No comments:
Post a Comment