Molteno mayor says all residents have access to electricity

01 Feb 2016 | Admin Author

The Mayor of the Inkwanca Municipality in the Eastern Cape says all residents in Molteno have access to electricity.

Mayor, Mthandazo Qamngwana, told Algoa FM News on Tuesday that he's not sure why residents took to the streets last week to protest the lack of power.

He's acknowledged that the power infrastructure in both Molteno and Sterkstroom are old and in need of replacement.

Qamngwana says they've reached an agreement with Eskom for the construction of a new and safe transformer for Molteno which would cost around R2-million.

"Everybody there in Molteno have got power, every household and business has got power and because I indicated earlier on that the substation is old and out dated it is risky. We have taken the initiative to build a new substation and we made this agreement with Eskom to build a safe transformer that will last for years" he said

Meanwhile, one major business owner in Molteno says they've been having service supply problems for a long time with respect to electricity and water.

Gary Moorcroft, the owner of a well-known biltong factory, says he's already spent around R700 000 on running a generator since March.

He says one line of his business has been moved to Port Elizabeth.

"We have had several meetings regarding the situation, the problem that we normally have is just a total lack of communication. We phone every day, our calls are not returned and not answered. At times we have been told that we are being unreasonable. What I understand is that Eskom is going to assist the municipality to assist the community but we have not received any feedback.

Algoa FM News has learnt that a transformer borrowed from Middelburg has not been connected.