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The DA in the KwaDukuza Local Municipality has written to the Executive Director of the Electrical Engineering unit, Sibusiso Jali, to request urgent action against brazen illegal electricity connections.

This as the municipality recorded a staggering R214 million in energy loss for the 2021/22 financial year. The municipality’s inability to deal with illegal connections is one of the compounding factors for the energy loss.

This has an impact on the level of service delivery to ratepayers and the financial viability of the municipality.

We have requested the following from the Executive Director:

- That the department secures infrastructure by deploying security patrols in hotspot areas and at strategic infrastructure in conjunction with Community Safety and within the allocated budget;
- That it considers looking into innovative technology to trace stolen cables and other electrical infrastructure; and
- That all reports of illegal connections are dealt with confidentially and within a reasonable turnaround time.

It is going to cost the municipality way less to implement these than what we are currently losing.

This is unjust to paying residents who will ultimately have to foot the bill to keep the municipality afloat by paying more for municipal services.

The DA will remain at the helm of fighting these illegal connections by ensuring that there is alignment between law enforcement and the electricity unit to tackle this blatant criminality head-on.

Issued by Councillor Privi Makhan - DA KwaDukuza Infrastructure and Technical Portfolio Committee Representative