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The township is said to owe Eskom R18 billion in unpaid electricity bills.

This week, Lungelo Lethu Human Rights Foundation (LLHRF) is finishing up court papers in a bid to haul Eskom to the South Gauteng High Court over electricity disconnections.

LLHRF’s president King Sibiya said they want an interim court order forcing Eskom to restore electricity to about 250 households.

Sibiya said they also want to force Eskom to get into negotiations with residents over the next 18 to 24 months to discuss a flat rate of R100 for energy consumption. “There are currently about 250 houses without electricity. While the whole area owes Eskom, we think the ones whose electricity has been switched off is more urgent.

“We want to kill the culture of non-payment in Soweto. We can’t divorce ourselves from Eskom. A R100 flat rate from those who haven’t been paying is better than nothing.”

He said the majority of people in the town
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According to the latest Household Affordability Index compiled by the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group (PMBEJD), more than half of SA’s population live on less than R41 a day.

The September 2019 Household Affordability Index shows that more than half of the population are living on less than R1 230 a month. The Index also shows that a quarter of the population, approximately 13.8 million people, are living on less than R19 a day.

A total of 56% of South Africans (30.4 million people) are living on less than R41 a day.

The group said: “Affordability, in its simplest form, is relative to income levels and the cost of goods and services (expenses). Workers work to support their families. Workers, reasonably expect to cover the costs of goods and services needed for dignity and household functionality off their wages. In most South African households, only one family member works. This one wage must support a reductive avera
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