Residents of Efata Complex, near Mthatha in the Eastern Cape, have accused the King Sabatha Dalindyebo Municipality of negligence. They say they have been waiting for the municipality to provide electricity to the area for past five years.
Many of the residents live with disabilities and use gas, wood and generators as sources of energy. Meter boxes were provided to the area last year, but the lights are still out.
Efata Complex is one of a few areas that don’t have electricity in Mthatha. Nomzingisi Nomgogwana lives in a prefab home. The 65-year-old has been blind since she was three years old. She is supposed to keep her diabetes medication in a refrigerator.
Howevr, she says, she keeps it on a cement floor, because she doesn’t have electricity.
“I don’t iron my clothes anymore, it’s difficult to live in these conditions. They installed everything in June last year and told us by December we will have electricity but until now we don’t have electricity.”
Another resident, Nofika Mtolo, is also blind. She has had a near death experience using paraffin.
“Electricity made things easy for us because you are able to operate everything in your home. But now we are dependent on people to operate paraffin and gas stoves because they are dangerous and I have a near death experience of dying in a fire due to a paraffin stove.”
Residents pay hundreds of rand per month buying petrol and gas – while those less fortunate use wood.
“I have a deaf child. It’s hard to communicate after dark because she can’t see signs. So this is putting a strain in our relationship with our children.”
Another resident adds, “Using a generator is expensive. I pay over R300 a week. I don’t work. I need to use wood cause it’s cheap but it is hard to find.”
The King Sabatha Local Municipality has accused residents of illegal connections.
KSD spokesperson, Sonwabo Mampoza, says a stolen transformer has also delayed the process of switching on the lights.
“The transformer of the municipality has been stolen. Secondly municipal workers were chased away by the community. It is in the plans of the municipality to ensure that the area is electrified. But due to the fact that people in that area are not cooperating and therefore we urge them to cooperate so we can connect them without delay.”
The residents of Efata are hopeful to have electricity before winter. This as their Mthatha counterparts threaten to take the Municipality to court over exorbitant electricity tariffs.
