Is City Power/ the City of Johannesburg regularly in the habit of sending racist sub-contractors around to tell customers to “f-off?”
Well, that’s what happened on 21 September, when Vincent Makuyah of Edison Power told me to “f-off,” but not before telling me, “It’s because you’re white,” when I refused to allow him to come and change the meter:
1. without an appointment
2. without any supporting paperwork
3. without our billing issue being resolved.
Can you please explain to me what my race has to do with anything?
He was accompanied by an unknown woman who had no form of identification but still expected me to open the property to her. On what planet, darling?
On 4 October a much more pleasant man, Samuel Ndaba of Bash Electrical, came again to change the meter, but again without an appointment and without any paperwork. I took a photo of the existing meter for him and sent him on his way, so that he can pass on the reading. At least he knows how to speak to customers.
Under no circumstances will anyone be changing our meter without first reconciling the old meter, which Gregory McDonald declared was in good working condition on 24 August this year. When the billing department finally catches a wake-up and reconciles the account, we will gladly have the meter changed to a pre-paid one (billing problem over). Until then, all we need is two meters and an even bigger billing mess. Ensure that your people have all the paperwork in order, and have made an appointment with us, which has been confirmed in writing to this email address, before any such meter change will take place.
In the week of 11–15 September, Joseph from Nkateko Business Enterprises left a piece of paper about access to meters in our post box. I contacted him on his landline – he still hasn’t responded.
On 11 October, Calvin from Bvelela Engineering left a similar piece of paper (attached) in our post box. But we’d already given the reading to City Power on 4 October, as per above.
Can you please explain to me why you are wasting the municipality’s money on ineffective meter reading companies, that neither return calls nor take down information and pass it onto the billing department?
Fire them, Herman!
