Relief or burden? eThekwini's Special Debt Relief Programme divides opinion

THERE has been a mixed reaction to the eThekwini Municipality’s decision to reinstate its Special Debt Relief Programme, which offers residents and businesses a 50 percent write-off on arrears. 

While some hail it as a victory for struggling residents, others criticise it as inadequate and failing to address root causes of the debt crisis

During a full council meeting last Thursday, a decision was taken to run the programme from November 1 to January 31, 2026, offering a write-off on arrears accrued up to January 31, 2025.

The municipality, in a statement, said customers who are unable to pay their arrears in full may do so through instalment plans, provided the debt was fully settled by January 31, 2026.

Additionally, customers who had accumulated debt from February 1, 2025 to June 30, 2025, must settle the outstanding debt.

“If they cannot afford to do so in one payment, they can enter into an arrangement with the municipality that would end on June 30, 2026. No interest will be charged.”

The municipality said customers who had suffered water losses and had claimed, but had been partially paid, also qualified for the relief. 

“The difference between the amount claimed, average monthly consumption and the amount paid by the insurance will be written off. Customers must provide valid documents as proof when applying for the debt relief.

“Where the customer can prove that water loss has occurred and no insurance claim has been lodged, the difference between the consumption billed and the average monthly consumption, will be written off,” the statement read. 

Reaction

Political parties

Niel Patchapen, an African Democratic Change PR councillor, rejected the debt relief. 

“It is grossly inadequate, exclusionary, and unjust to long-suffering residents and small businesses.”

In September, Patchapen submitted a motion to council calling for a 100 percent blanket amnesty on all outstanding municipal accounts for both residential and business across the city.

He said the motion sought to deliver meaningful relief to ratepayers burdened by years of municipal mismanagement, systemic billing failures, and service delivery collapse.

“On September 22, the Speaker’s Office responded to me saying, ‘The Speaker must disallow a notice of motion that is longer than 150 words or contains unnecessary, factually incorrect, incriminating, disparaging or improper suggestions’.

“This measure that fails to remedy historical billing chaos and punishes residents for administrative failures not of their making,” he said. 

Jonathan Annipen, an IFP councillor, said the reinstatement of the debt write-off was a victory for the people. 

“This programme will help restore dignity to countless families who have been weighed down by historic municipal debt. We encourage everyone who qualifies to seize this opportunity and work with the municipality to rebuild a sustainable financial future.”

Thinta Cibane, the ANC eThekwini region spokesperson, said they fully supported the programme.

“The programme provides an important opportunity for residents to gain much-needed relief during these challenging economic times. The initiative will help reduce household debt, improving household liquidity, while also assisting the city in generating much-needed revenue.

“In the past, similar initiatives have proven successful, with the city collecting over R1 billion rand during the implementation period. We are confident that extending the current programme over a longer period will allow more residents to benefit. We therefore encourage all affected residents to make use of this opportunity to regularise their accounts and contribute to the sustainability of our city’s finances,” he said. 

Andre Beetge, a DA member of the eThekwini Executive Committee, said: “We had consistently championed this initiative over recent months. By engaging with residents, gathering facts, and presenting practical, evidence based proposals, rather than resorting to last-minute, poorly conceived or populist interventions, we have demonstrated that effective governance is founded on accountability, consultation, and fairness.”

Associations

Ish Prahladh, president of the eThekwini Ratepayers and Residents Association, said while the 50 percent debt write-off would be a big relief for consumers, there were concerns about the functionality of the billing system. 

“The city has to sort out their billing system which is in chaos resulting in charges that are astronomical and mostly incorrect. Consumers may find relief but still end up in bigger debt because of incorrect charges. 

“Firstly, the city  must have monthly readings of water and electricity meters to make sure the amount billed is correct. However, consumers need to read their meters and statements accordingly so the meter readings correspond with reading on their statements. If consumers do not keep an eye on these readings they will land up in more debt and will be met with the city’s only response,  ‘pay or we cut’.” 

Abdool Valodia, chairperson of the Overport Ratepayers Association, said they viewed the programme with “cautious and conditional support”.

“In principle, the programme has the potential to be beneficial as it can serve as a· lifeline for struggling residents and as an incentive to re-engage those who have disengaged from paying their municipal accounts due to unmanageable debt to re-enter the system. It can also boost municipal revenue.

“However, our support is conditional. The programme's success and true benefit to citizens are entirely dependent on the municipality addressing critical concerns such as the root cause. This programme is a reaction to a debt crisis that is, in large part, a consequence of inconsistent and poor service delivery.

“Residents cannot be expected to pay in full for services - like water, electricity, and refuse removal - that are often unreliable or non-existent. The municipality must simultaneously demonstrate a clear and actionable plan to improve its core service delivery infrastructure. Without this, we risk being in the same position again in a few years. We urge the municipality to use this opportunity to rebuild trust, and not just to balance its books,” he said. 

Alice Govender, chairperson of the Phoenix Civic and Ratepayers Association, said: “While we welcome the programme and believe this is a step in the right direction to alleviating financial hardship for residents, we are still concerned about the fact that the agreements being signed by residents, for the amounts reflected on their bills, are estimates. 

“It is grossly unfair to residents to enter into agreements to settle debts that are based on estimates. Just this year,  our municipality wrote off R900 million in wasteful and irregular expenditure.  If they could write off their own mistakes, how is it they are unable to write off R300 million for residents who are struggling to make ends meet. 

“Residents are faced with the decision of having to choose between keeping the lights on or putting food on the table. The municipality must take the moral and ethical high ground and  find it in their hearts to  revisit the historic debt and look to write off the approximately R300 million residents debt,” she said. 

Rachael Naidoo, secretary-general of the Tongaat Civic Association, said they rejected the programme as it could lead to a “debt trap”.

“The programme is touted as being pro-poor. However, it is a façade that only benefits the rich. It is a trap to fund the feeding frenzy of public money. Consumers are carrying the burden of systematic billing errors, chronic mismanagement, corruption, the absence of consequence management, service delivery failures and a bloated administration amongst others. The city has condoned irregular expenditure and now expects the consumer to pay for it. The programme is aimed at  merely filling the coffers of a dysfunctional municipality.

“Consumers may find relief but could still end up in greater debt due to incorrect charges. This is a vicious cycle of debt. Firstly, the municipality must conduct monthly readings of water and electricity meters to ensure the billed amounts are correct. Additionally, consumers need to read their meters and statements to ensure the meter readings correspond with the readings on their statements,” she said. 

Nazeera Khan, a director of the Shallcross Chatsworth and Queensburgh Ratepayers Association, said: “The decision to extend the programme is not a solution, it’s a distraction. A 50 percent write-off cannot fix decades of corruption, mismanagement, and false billing that created this crisis. Our communities have paid faithfully for services never delivered, and it is the municipality, not ratepayers that owes residents accountability.

“True relief must start with a 100 percent debt amnesty, a forensic audit of the billing system, and a public recovery of funds lost to irregular expenditure. Until that happens, ratepayers are being forced to pay for municipal failure. This programme does not serve citizens, it protects those who broke public trust. The municipality must clean its house before demanding payment from its people,” she said. 

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