The City of Cape Town has asked Eskom not to go ahead with plans to close its community service centres from 28 June.
The request comes after concerns were expressed during the latest meeting between the City and Eskom on 14 June.
The City’s mayoral committee member for energy, Councillor Beverly van Reenen, said the closure of service hubs without adequate measures will affect the access to electricity services for many Cape Town residents.
“Particularly the most vulnerable communities who rely on Eskom’s frontline services,” said Van Reenen.
During the meeting, Eskom told the City that it plans to increase public education on its Alfred chatbot for fault reporting and introduce an option for customers without access to the chatbot.
Van Reenen said they welcomed the new measures in principle, but the City needed to be convinced they would provide sufficient access to all communities.
“While the City values service delivery to residents, there are limits to what the City or its representatives can achieve as Eskom is a national entity and does not fall within the control of the City,” said Van Reenen.
Eskom’s stakeholder management and industry support department announced earlier that the utility was improving its customer service experience by activating pop-up offices in its supply areas.
This would reduce the financial burden on customers using public transport and avoid them having to brave bad weather while waiting in long queues.
Pictured above: Eskom building.
Source: Eskom
