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Tembisa burns as power cuts spark unrest and city steps in
On Sunday night, parts of Tembisa were lit not by streetlights, but by burning tyres.
Angry residents poured into the streets after electricity was cut off to households with unpaid accounts. Stones were scattered across key routes. Roads were blocked. Smoke hung low over neighbourhoods that say they have had enough.
The protest, confirmed by the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department, saw several major roads barricaded. According to EMPD spokesperson Katlego Mphahlele, Brian Mazibuko Drive, RTJ Namane Drive, and Emfihlweni were among those affected. Motorists were urged to avoid the area as officers from the First Response Unit, Public Order Policing, and the South African Police Service monitored the situation.
Why tensions boiled over
At the heart of the unrest is the City of Ekurhuleni’s intensified credit control measures. The municipality has stepped up electricity disconnections for non-payment and issued more pre-termination and termination notices.
For many residents, that move landed at the worst possible time. Tembisa, like many townships across Gauteng, is home to working-class families already navigating rising living costs and patchy economic prospects. Electricity is not a luxury here. It is how people cook, keep food from spoiling, study after dark, and run small home-based businesses.
Community members have threatened mass action over what they see as harsh enforcement measures, particularly where vulnerable households are concerned.
Mayor steps in
By Sunday evening, the political response had begun.
City of Ekurhuleni mayor Nkosindiphile Xhakaza said he had taken note of the planned protest and the concerns raised about service disconnections and the city’s indigent policy. After consultations with ward councillors and community representatives, he instructed departments to halt the issuing of pre-termination and termination letters.
Importantly, the city also paused disconnections affecting indigent and deemed indigent households while a comprehensive investigation is conducted.
Acting mayoral spokesperson Ramatolo Tlotleng confirmed that electricity would progressively be restored to households that qualify under the city’s indigent criteria. The mayor has also undertaken to review the indigent policy to ensure it reflects current socio-economic realities and protects vulnerable communities.
In addition, a process will be initiated to scrap outstanding debt for registered indigent and deemed indigent households, subject to verification and policy alignment.
A balancing act between payment and protection
The city has emphasised that maintaining a culture of payment is essential for the sustainability of services. At the same time, it has acknowledged a constitutional obligation to safeguard the most vulnerable.
The message from the administration is clear: no qualifying indigent household should lose access to basic services because of administrative gaps or policy shortcomings.
Residents have been urged to remain calm while investigations and policy reviews unfold. The city says it remains open to dialogue and structured engagement aimed at strengthening service delivery and restoring stability.
What this moment means for Tembisa
The images of burning tyres may fade, but the bigger conversation is only beginning. Across Gauteng, municipalities are grappling with mounting debt and service delivery pressures. Communities, meanwhile, are demanding fairness and transparency in how policies are applied.
For Tembisa, this is about more than unpaid bills. It is about dignity, accountability, and whether local government can find a way to enforce payment without pushing struggling families further into the dark.
As power is gradually restored to qualifying households, all eyes will be on how swiftly the city follows through on its promises. In townships where frustration often simmers quietly, moments like this are reminders that electricity is not just about infrastructure. It is about trust.
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Source: IOL
Featured Image: EWN
