By Tim Mpakathe | DA Councillor Mantsopa Municipality
Note to editors: Please find attached English and Sesotho soundbites by Cllr Tim Mpakathe.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Mantsopa is taking urgent action to prevent the impending electricity disconnection by Eskom, scheduled for 2 April 2025.
We are demanding accountability from the municipality for failing to apply for the National Treasury’s Debt Relief Programme, a crucial initiative designed to help municipalities settle their escalating Eskom debt over three years.
Despite a council resolution passed on 3 November 2023, which granted the Municipal Manager, Ms. Matiro Mogopudi, twelve months to develop and implement an action plan to meet the programme’s conditions, no progress reports have been tabled.
The complete failure to act on this resolution is proof that the ANC-led administration has no serious intention of addressing the municipality’s Eskom debt crisis.
Meanwhile, Mantsopa is losing R648,000 every month—totalling nearly R7.8 million annually—due to unbilled power meter services and illegal electricity connections, often facilitated by municipal employees. This is money that could have been used to pay off Eskom’s debt and prevent the looming power cut.
The DA is calling on the Municipal Manager to invoke Schedule 2 of the Municipal Systems Act and take disciplinary action against senior officials who have colluded with electricity technicians to sabotage the municipality’s financial stability.
Furthermore, we will hold the administration accountable to ensure that law-abiding residents and businesses who pay for electricity are not unfairly punished for the municipality’s negligence.
The DA will not stand by while Mantsopa residents face unnecessary hardship. We will continue to fight for financial accountability and demand urgent intervention to prevent Eskom from switching off the lights in our community.