Opposition councillors staged a sit-in protest at City Hall, demanding urgent intervention from the Acting City Manager to resolve an outstanding telecommunications debt of over R9 million that has left Nelson Mandela Bay residents unable to access essential municipal services.
The sit-in on Thursday, 25 September, was posted on social media by Ward 7 Councillor Brendon Pegram, who described the outstanding debt as a fundamental failure.
According to Pegram, the unpaid telecommunications bill has resulted in severe service disruptions, with residents unable to contact municipal call centres or ward offices.
“It’s time for accountability and today, we’ll be demanding it,” said Pegram. He further described the situation as “utterly appalling”.
“They owe the telecommunication supplier just over R 9 million. These are the issues that keep investors out of our city.”
Meanwhile, Ward 2 Councillor Sean Tappan highlighted the direct impact on residents, stating that “residents can’t contact the call centre nor the ward office due to a dispute over the non-payment of a R9m bill.”
Responding to questions, Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Spokesperson, Sithembiso Soyaya, confirmed that municipal telephone lines are currently down due to an outstanding debt.
“The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality confirms that the outstanding telephone account currently stands at approximately R9 million.
“As a result, services have been suspended and the Municipality’s landline system is presently inaccessible to the public.”
Soyaya added that a due diligence process is underway to verify the account in full before payment is affected.
“As a responsible organ of state, the Municipality is required to manage public resources in strict compliance with the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) and related regulations,” he commented. “This ensures that the Municipality settles only for services duly rendered and that every cent of ratepayers’ money is accounted for responsibly.”
Questioned on when the account arrears are expected to be paid, Soyaya said the Municipality plans to finalise the matter swiftly.
“The account will be paid once the verification process has been concluded and the Municipality remains committed to finalising this matter as swiftly as possible while upholding sound financial governance,” he said. “The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality regrets the inconvenience caused to residents and stakeholders and wishes to assure the public that restoring full telephone services is being prioritised.”
In the interim, residents and stakeholders are encouraged to use the following alternative channels to access municipal services:
• The official website: www.nelsonmandelabay.gov.za
• The Municipality’s official mobile app
• Customer Care email: [email protected]
• Walk-in Customer Care Centres across the Metro
• Ward Councillor offices for direct community support
