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The Democratic Alliance (DA) is assisting Upington’s poorest residents to re-register for indigent status after their application forms have been lost by the Dawid Kruiper municipality.

As DA councillor of Ward 3, I was approached by a number of unemployed residents who have been struggling to purchase enough electricity for lighting and to be able to cook for their families, at the costly regular tariff. On investigation, the municipality informed me that they had in fact lost a number of the 2020 and 2021 application forms, meaning that these poor residents are receiving no concessions, despite qualifying for lower tariffs based on their indigent status.

The DA will be further querying administrative processes to determine how it is possible that application forms have disappeared.

Given that the municipal official responsible for the indigent forms is without transport, the DA is further providing transport to residents who wish to re-register for indigent status, and also following-up on their individual cases with the municipality.

In these increasingly challenging economic times, it is inhumane to expect the destitute to have to care for their families by keeping up with exorbitant energy tariffs that even the middle-class is battling to pay.

Issued by Albie Van Zyl, Cllr - Dawid Kruiper municipality