"Your City versus You"

1.   As long as cash flow constraints require your City to inflate its “actual” and “estimated” meter readings in order try and balance its cashflow,  a new challenge will stay prevalent; consumers have to record (with photos), monitor and verify (with substantiating written documentation) “actual readings” of the consumer’s water and electricity consumption and meter readings.

2.   It is important to know your statutory rights as formulated in Section 95 of the Municipal Systems Act, 32 of 2000.  In short, your City MUST inter alia:

2.1. “take reasonable steps to ensure that the consumption of services by individual consumers are measured through ACCURATE and VERIFIABLE metering services” - Sect 95 (d); 

2.2.   ensure "receipt by customers of REGULAR and ACCURATE ACCOUNTS that indicate the basis of calculation of amounts due" - Sect 95 (e); 

2.3.   "provide accessible mechanisms for consumers to QUERY or VERIFY accounts and metered consumption and APPEAL PROCEDURES in respect of inaccurate accounts" - Sect. 95 (f); and

2.4.    " provide ACCESSIBLE mechanisms for dealing with complaints, PROMPT REPLIES and CORRECTIVE ACTION" - Sect 95 (g).

3.     Sect 102 (2) of the same Act stipulates  that your City is prevented from terminating your electricity or water supply when there is a recorded dispute between your City and yourself relating to any specific amount claimed by your City.

4.    Sect 155 (6) and (7) of the South African Constitution, as well as Sect 105 (1) of the Municipal Systems Act requires the MEC for local government to "establish mechanisms, processes and procedures to monitor inter alia, statutory compliance of its obligations by your City and its staff members"

5.     Many staff members employed by your City,  as well as various consumers, are unfortunately miss- or uninformed in respect of the rights and obligations governing your City in the supply of electricity, water, sewer and refuse, as well as the collection of rates and taxes.

6.     Certain recent examples showcasing the interpretation and implementation by staff employed by your City, in attempted compliance of the statutory duties – namely to provide "accessible mechanisms" to deal with complaints, to query and to seek rectification of incorrect water and electricity billing, initiated by an incorrect “estimate” reading, ‘crossing the line’, and being framed and captured as an “actual” reading.  After 4 different visits to our City, it was clear that Sect 95 (d), (e), (f) and (g) of the Municipal Systems Act, 32 of 2000 were all being violated by our City, in certain instances with a clear intention thereto.

7.      The Municipal Systems Act refers to REGULAR, ACCURATE, and VERIFIABLE meter readings. The concept of an "estimated reading” could only have been formulated by your City.  The definition of "estimated meter readings" should be clearly defined and communicated to consumers together with a description of the qualification and classification criteria required. The qualification criteria should define that “actual readings” obtained and recorded by meter readers of Joburg City should be accurately recorded and be used as “actual readings” for calculation of ACCURATE and VERIFIABLE accounts as determined by abovementioned Act. The mechanisms and processes implemented by your City should ensure “accessible, transparent, accurate and verifiable consumer billing” and not to prevent the said statutory requirements.

8.    “Estimated readings” done by your City: 

8.1.      and resultant billing should only be allowed for a very limited period when an “actual reading” was objectively prevented or impossible; 

8.2.     and reversal thereof should be openly recorded and reported through accountable and transparent systems and processes, requiring the capturing of the estimated readings, clearly stating the units, tariffs and amounts estimated with stating the units, tariffs and amounts when reversed. This is a necessary requirement to overcome the current practice by your City refusing to provide detail of reversal of estimated reading debits, with excuse  that the required pages and information have been removed from the computer systems of your City and;

8.3.     could never be reframed and captured by your City as "actual readings", as this will be a statutory beach by your City, as well as constituting FRAUD by the person responsible for the misrepresentation of the truth to the detriment of the consumer.

9.      When a statutory right of a municipal consumer is abused or violated by your City, the irregularity should be responsibly raised and escalated, together with proper substantiating documentation. This will in turn allow the MEC for Local Government as well as Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Pravin Gordhan to take the necessary steps investigating any alleged breach of statutory provision as required by Sect 105 and 106 of the Municipal Systems Act, 2000, as well as Section 155 of our Constitution. 

10.      Your local City Councilor is furthermore entrusted, and under obligation to ensure accountability and transparency in compliance of the statutory obligations by your City.

11.      Details of your local Councilors are available on the website of City of Johannesburg (www.joburg.org.za).

Article to be published soon: “Create and Calculate your own monthly Municipal Account”

Written by

Johnnie Louw – Attorney

1 November 2014