City Power said in a statement that it is urging the management of the Johannesburg Society for the Blind to come clean about why the institution’s electricity supply and other municipal services were disconnected.
Isaac Mangena, Spokesperson of City Power said “we can confirm that towards the end of 2023, we disconnected the organisation’s electricity supply due to management’s continued defaulting on payment.
The organisation owes R9.8 million in unpaid electricity bills.
The last time the institution made payment was in January 2022 in the form of a R30 000 amount against a monthly billing of R70 000.
Despite numerous engagements we’ve held with the management, imploring them to consider various payment arrangements, the organisation still continued defaulting.”
But Vangile Nyamatha, Chief Executive Officer of Johannesburg Society for the Blind said firstly, the City of Joburg has registered the organization as a business and not an NPO (not for profit organization).
As a result, she is billed between R120 – R150K every month.
Secondly, Nyamatha said, an energy audit was undertaken to determine the cause of the exhobirtant bill.
Findings of the audit, done by Imbokodo, was that most energy is used in the kitchen, where 3 meals a day, are prepared for residents.
She said a migration to a gas fired kitchen took place back in 2013, but this did not change the amount billed every month, which stands at around R80K every month.
Nyamatha said there is no grant received by the Society for services, and numerous attempts to liaise with the City, have hit a deadend.
Now, the latest plan is to get a letter from the Provincial Department of Social Development, to register with Deaf Diaries, as an indigent organization.
While electricity supply was cut back in November 2023, water supply was cut back in 2020, leaving the society of 72 residents, to rely on a borehole and a solar system.
The youngest resident of the Society is 18 years old and the oldest is 79.
Nyamatha said SASSA grants received by her residents pay for a chunk of the services.