Pretoria - The City of Tshwane has blamed illegal connections and cable theft for the widespread power outages in region one, fuelling protests in some communities.
Since Monday, residents of Soshanguve Block VV, UU and WW have been forced to stay in darkness yet again owing to a prolonged power interruption.
Many said their efforts to seek answers from the municipality fell on deaf ears as no one could shed light on the turnaround time for power restoration.
“What about what is happening here in Soshanguve block WW, UU, and VV, someone is playing with the cables here. Every week we experience the same problem and it seems like you can’t come up with a solution. Come month-end we will be billed for full services and won’t be compensated,” tweeted a resident Junior Makhubedu. The Pretoria News reported last week that residents experienced a similar unexpected power cut as a result of cable theft.
MMC for utilities and regional operations and co-ordination, Themba Fosi, said he was aware of a high volume of power outages and water supply interruptions in various areas.
He said the municipality was working hard to address the high number of service interruptions.
Fosi said: “The City would like to assure residents of all the areas that are affected by these interruptions that, despite capacity constraints due to the ongoing unlawful and unprotected strike by some employees, the City’s technicians are working hard to restore interrupted services throughout the seven regions of Tshwane.”
He further apologised to customers for the inconvenience caused by the ongoing strike of the SA Municipal Workers’ Union.
Pretoria News