Increasing free electricity allowance won’t help if municipalities don’t deliver

Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa's proposal to increase the free electricity allowance will prove ineffective without municipalities actually delivering power to low-income families. Michael Cherry, a retired professor of zoology, recently observed that while the Local Government Equitable Share is being withheld from 69 municipalities due to non-compliance, only 20 municipalities (out of 69) are meeting the financial compliance standards.

The remaining 49 municipalities continue to owe R27-billion to Eskom, water boards and their employees' pension funds. The core issue lies in the municipalities' failure to pay their own bills, as they are, in turn, owed R219-billion by households, businesses and government departments. This mismanagement extends to Eskom, where electricity prices have risen sixfold over the past 20 years, making it unaffordable for many households and industries.

Despite Ramokgopa's announcement of raising the free basic electricity allowance to 200-300kWh per month, this measure alone will not address the fundamental problem. Currently, 11.2 million households (56%) are eligible for free basic services, but only a quarter receive them. To tackle the issue, the government must ensure that the basic services allocation is ring-fenced to reach the intended households, and municipalities must pay these services to indigent households without resorting to misappropriation.