Getting through the month has become a toss-up between keeping the lights on or keeping food on the table for George pensioner Henry Hartnik.
Five months ago, R100 worth of electricity, plus the municipality’s 50 free units, carried him through the month. Today, he spends up to R500 and still runs out.
“I don’t have a geyser. We use electricity only for lights, the stove and the fridge,” he said. “Nothing has changed in how we live. But the units don’t last any more. When the electricity finishes, it finishes. And then we must decide what we can live without.”
Across parts of the town in the Western Cape, struggling residents say they are paying more for electricity without using more, and they blame the municipality’s new billing system for pushing already vulnerable households to the brink.
