BCM chases R162m debt
[caption id="attachment_96560" align="alignright" width="300"] Buffalo City Executive Mayor Alfred Mtsi.[/caption]
A row is brewing between business and Buffalo City Metro (BCM) over an unpaid bill of R162-million.Several businesses spoken to claimed they were paying for services even when they were not delivered – especially refuse removal.
BCM‚ for its part‚ claimed this week that a staggering 5000 businesses of all sizes owed a total of R162-million‚ most of it incurred during the last financial year.
Border-Kei Chamber of Business (BKCOB) director Les Holbrook questioned the accuracy of the figures. “It could be 5000‚ it could be 500‚” he said.
Holbrook said the issue surfaced at a mayor’s forum discussion last week when it emerged that BCM was closing down businesses in the CBD.
“I brought it up and a senior official flew into me saying we business people must come right and pay what is due.”
Holbrook said yesterday he was in close contact with BCM CFO Vincent Pillay and “he’s never said anything to me about it”.
BCM spokesman Thandy Matebese said the billing system showed that the R162-million was owed on June 30.
Matebese could not say how many of the debtors’ accounts were “active” (operating businesses) or “inactive” (businesses which have shut down).
Holbrook said: “There might be quite a few firms who are not paying because they cannot afford to – but 5000? That is four times the members of our chamber and I have not heard of any talk among our members – or other businesspeople – about not paying their bills.”
Matebese said there were 26000 “active and inactive” business accounts on the metro’s billing system and BCM billed them about R100-million a month.
He accused business “hubs” of being major culprits for non-payment.
The Dispatch checked with Beacon Bay Retail Park centre manager Urshula Pape who said they had been paying BCM an “availability fee” for refuse removal for 16 years – “but not a single BCM truck has ever arrived to pick up the general refuse”.
Despite protestations and talks‚ the centre was still paying R17000 a month for the service‚ while also having to pay private waste removal companies more than this to do the work.
Matebese’s breakdown of outstanding business debt is R19-million (water)‚ R27-million (electricity); R65-million (rates)‚ R14-million (sewerage)‚ R8-million (refuse)‚ R13-million for “sundry debt” and R16-million interest.
He said: “Non-payment by any debtor has a negative effect on the municipality’s ability to provide services and has a negative impact on the metro’s cash flow.”
Gwyn Bassingthwaighte‚ principal of IGB Properties‚ said municipal refuse collection at their four industrial sites was “so useless and incompetent we have to call in private guys to clear the rubbish and the cost is distributed to the businesses”.
“It can cost us R50000 to R80000 a month‚” Bassingthwaighte said.
“It’s unconstitutional and iniquitous. We contact the municipality and everyone ducks and dives. We are pushed from one desk to another. We pay for three BCM refuse removals a week and are lucky if we get one in three weeks.”
Willie Pieterse‚ who runs the 48-year-old Elvin food manufacturing and supply business on the West Bank‚ said they not only paid to have knocked-down stop signs put back up but also fixed the potholes in their road.
“We have not resorted to withholding on our municipal payments‚” he said.
Chris Batting‚ owner of the old CNA building in Oxford Street‚ said he was being billed R3000 a month for a skip outside his building “even though there is no skip”.
“I pay or they will cut me off. It’s not great but I try not to lose sleep over it. It’s one of those things.”
Holbrook said the metro needed to come up with creative ways to recover the money such as granting a reduction‚ repayment plans and establishing a tribunal. – Aretha Linden And Mike Loewe, Daily Dispatch, RDM News Wire
