POLL | Should Soweto's R5bn Eskom bill be written off?

The debate about billions owed by Soweto residents to Eskom was thrown back into the spotlight this week by Panyaza Lesufi.

Speaking during a visit to Zola 3, the Gauteng premier said the debt needed to be resolved as soon as possible and asked residents who could afford to pay for services.

“Until we remove the debt of electricity in Soweto, we are not going to resolve the problem of electricity in Soweto. But we can't just remove the debt. We must agree on a process and it's very simple: protect those who are unemployed and the elderly who can't pay, but ensure those running businesses in our township pay. 

“[You] can’t hide behind the poor when you are employed or you run businesses in our township. That's the process we must undertake without fear or favour.”

Lesufi added that illegal connections needed to be dealt with or the debt would soon build up again.

Since government took over Eskom’s debt, the state-owned entity (SOE) should write off poor communities' debts, he said.

Lesufi's comments sparked debate on whether this should happen, with some saying it would help the most needy.

Others said it would be unfair to residents in other parts of the country who owed money to the power utility.

Eskom said by September 30 2022 Soweto owed it R4.7bn. 

According to News24, the SOE has already written off billions in unpaid electricity bills, with nearly R8bn in overdue debt cancelled in 2020.

In 2021, TimesLIVE reported that Eskom wrote off R5bn of Soweto’s then R12bn debt.

Late last year, President Cyril Ramaphosa said the R50bn owed to Eskom by municipalities and government departments must be recovered.

“We have made it clear that nonpayment for services is unacceptable and have taken a number of steps to ensure the payment of these debts is recovered,” said Ramaphosa.

He said the government had established a multidisciplinary revenue committee to address nonpayment.

“To assist municipalities across the country to pay what they owe Eskom, the department of public works pays the service charges and property rates for its properties on behalf of client departments.”