Ratepayers described the practice as day light robbery, after they were forced to fork-out a $10 reconnection fee.
“This month alone ZESA has disconnected my homestead in Nyameni a record three times. Each time they cut me off, I am forced to pay at least half of what I owed them. They would restore the power supply after I paid an additional $10 reconnection fee. This robbed me of no less than $30 in connection fees alone in a single month.
The practice was both unjustified and unscrupulous behaviour by the sole power supplier in the country. Just imagine the power utility randomly switching off homesteads whenever it feels like lining its pocket,” complained a resident, Sheila Ndudzo, of Nyameni. The plight of defaulting bill payers has been worsened by unscrupulous ZESA employees who solicit bribes in return for not cutting the power.
A ZESA official who said he was the organisation’s Public Relations Officer claimed:
“The new area manager based in Chinhoyi has resolved to collect all revenue owed the organisation by defaulting clients before the end of the year. He wants to capacitate ZESA’s ability to afford the rehabilitation of run down power generating plants and provide enough power to ratepayers. He was given the authority, without the approval of an Act of parliament, to make whatever decision he wanted.”
He referred any further questions to the organisation’s national spokesperson, Gwasira, who could not be reached for comment.
Vulnerable and abused ratepayers called on the government to investigate the conduct of ZESA.
Post published in: News