Some of Tshwane’s highest owing communities in rates and taxes say they see no reason to pay for services as they grapple with poor service delivery and unresolved billing issues. 

The City of Tshwane on Thursday listed the top-five highest owing communities, some of which are in the affluent east of Pretoria, owing over R700m to the municipality. 

The metro is owed R23.3bn by various communities, businesses and government entities.  

The highest owing ward is 42, which includes areas such as Waterkloof and Monumentpark, which owes R756.7m, with a payment rate of 53.68%. 

Ward 101, including Silver Lakes and Boschkop, owes R726.5m, with a payment rate of 40.23% while ward 84, which includes Queenswood and Kilner Park, owes R485.3m with a payment rate of 29.69%, while Mamelodi West’s ward 17 owes the metro R485.6m with a payment rate of 29.69%. Ward 21 in Mabopane owes R449.5m with a payment rate of 12,9%

Organiser and president of the Mamelodi Concerned Residents Association Oupa Mtshweni said the Mamelodi West area was grappling with illegal water and electricity connections at mushrooming nearby informal settlement, for which ordinary taxpayers were footing the bill. 

“Why should this come at a cost to us? The metro should switch off for those who have connected illegally, but they seem to be scared of them and are targeting our residents here. We are indirectly subsidising illegal connections and that is a fact. 

“Our townships are neglected. With over 20 informal settlements in Mamelodi alone, why aren’t these areas formalised so that we can all be equal and pay for rates?” 

Mtshweni said Tshwane has had billing system issues for years which residents still have no answers for.  “We do not get our bills to tell us the exact measure of consumption. Our grannies are expected to go to the municipal office using public transport just to get billing recipes. Tshwane is out of touch with the problems its townships are faced with.” 

A resident, who preferred to be called Modisenyane, who owes the city R2.445, said the reason he stopped paying for rates and taxes is because they don’t receive monthly bills.

“I stopped paying in June last year because I was not receiving any statement. I depend on Sassa money, and it is not enough to survive and pay an estimated bill. I have three siblings that depend on my Sassa income.”

David Tladi of the Inwooners Baagi Civic Movement in Mabopane said the estimation billing system was problematic.

“We have been struggling with this system since 2016. We have opened dialogue with all the different mayors that came, telling them to reinstate meter readers, but instead, communities were given empty promises,” he said. 

“Residents are no longer opting to take to the streets. They are withholding their money because after all, what services do we get?” 

He said child-headed homes, homes of the elderly and poor households were yet to receive proper attention in Mabopane. 

“Social workers were brought to do an audit of needy households. This was during mayor Solly Msimanga’s time. To date, we do not know the outcomes and they have not been attended to. 

“Our communities still have mobile toilets. Hammanskraal is drinking dirty water. Our streetlights do not work at night. What exactly are people paying for?" 

He said residents were prepared to pay for services if Tshwane fixed its billing system and improved services. “It's like driving a Datsun and being expected to pay installment for a Mercedez Benz. It does not work like that.” 

The metro’s finance MMC Jacqui Uys said the heightening of its Tshwane Ya Tima disconnection programme would see them targeting all defaulters and assisting the metro recoup about R500m owed to the municipality.  

“Following the relaunch of our disconnection drive we have received calls from residents to focus on specific areas which they assume have a high rate of defaulting clients,” she said. 

“The city is now already seeing the impact of the campaign on our daily cash collections. The current rate of collections will see us collecting R500m of the R1bn monthly stretched target as per the financial rescue plan, bringing cash collections for March to about R3.5bn,” she said.