Komani is in a state of paralysis with striking Samwu workers demanding money set aside to pay Enoch Mgijima municipality’s outstanding Eskom bill.
The union has forced the municipality, now under administration, to juggle two nasty scenarios: don’t pay Eskom and be plunged into darkness, or don’t pay Samwu and see all municipal offices and services shut down.
Komani was trashed and municipal offices were closed on Monday. On Tuesday the municipality came to a halt as Samwu marched.
They are demanding the “harmonisation” of salaries of the three former local municipalities Tsolwana, Inkwanca and Lukhanji. This will come to a bill of R8m for the current financial year.
On Monday workers went around town spilling refuse on streets, pavements and in municipal buildings.
Red Guard security guards were stationed at all municipal offices. Few municipal employees were seen at their posts.
Residents could not pay their municipal accounts or renew or make licence applications.
Samwu’s Enoch Mgijima secretary, Thabo Ngwane, said the demand was that all salaries be equalised in each grade.
The union had calculated that failure to harmonise the grades was short-changing employees by a total of R1m a month.
Ngwane said: “A council resolution was taken in August to effect the harmonisation of salaries, but that has not happened. We want the municipality to start with that this month going forward.”
He said the union was not demanding backpay in light of the municipality’s dire cash situation. Nonetheless, Ngwane said: “We know the municipality has the equitable share money and it is planning to pay Eskom with it instead of giving us what they agreed on.”
He said employees of former Lukhanji, Inkwanca and Tsolwana were still paid according to those grades despite the amalgamation that formed Enoch Mgijima. “Workers doing the same thing earn different salaries,” he said.
The Dispatch has seen a copy of the council resolution that approves the harmonisation process and directs municipal CFO Gcobani Mashiyi to source funding for the harmonisation process. It states payment should be between September and December.
DA councillor Malibongwe Xhelisilo said the workers who would benefit from the harmonisation process were former Tsolwana and Inkwanca workers, who were still being paid at grade two level, while former Lukhanji staff were on grade four.
“They demand that all workers be lifted to grade four as the municipality is a grade four municipality,” he said.
He said the workers wanted a commitment from the politicians stating when they were going to pay their money “and that is what the politicians are running away from”.
Border-Kei Chamber of Business administrator in Komani Adre Bartis said the strike, the municipal shutdown and Eskom’s load-shedding were hammering businesses and the community. “With the loadshedding there are no workers to check if all the areas are back with power after the shutdown and that has affected most of the businesses in town. Recently more than 190 accounts were blocked by the municipality and these people can’t buy electricity. With the strike they can’t even be helped as there is no one working there,” she said.
Bartis said on Monday about 43 people queueing outside the municipality to pay their service bills were turned away.
Komani had no power from 9am to 4pm on Tuesday. The municipality blamed it on Eskom’s maintenance work.
Bartis said: “Local businesses are going through hell.
“There are businesses without generators who are not making any revenue.
“This is a serious knock for the town’s economy.
“If the strike continues people will start losing jobs.”
Adre said a group of people had volunteered to clean Cathcart Road, which is a national road and the main street running through the town.
Enoch Mgijima municipal spokesperson Fundile Feketshane apologised for the inconvenience caused by the strike and promised they would reach a lasting solution.
“This is due to some amount of money due to them. However, the financial climate does not allow those payments to be effected in the current situation. Management is currently engaged in discussions with the workers so that stability is brought back for the benefit of service delivery,” he said.
Eskom spokesperson Zama Mpondwana confirmed that electricity maintenance work in Komani would end at 4pm on Tuesday...