Africa-Press – Namibia. Keetmanshoop residents have urged the municipality to curb fuel spending instead of increasing electricity tariffs for the 2025/26 financial year.
Resident Gernot Awasman, who was speaking at the Electricity Control Board-facilitated stakeholder engagement on Monday, said the municipality needs to review unneccessary expenses, such as on vehicles and fuel, to be able to execute its core mandates of providing land, housing, water and electricity, and removing refuse.
The Keetmanshoop Electricity Business Unit (Kebu) is seeking approval for a 6% electricity increase from the Electricity Control Board (ECB) for the 2025/26 financial year.
“When we look at the electricity budget, we question things like how you are able to afford a social electricity tarriff for pensioners, payments for individuals should accidents happen, etc.
“Because we as the community can tell you if you manage your vehicle fleet better, the fuel costs, maintenance and wear and tear will make a significant difference.
“We see those vehicles day and night. You wonder is there a crisis every day, with multiple vehicles of the municipality on the roads daily,” Awasman said.
Kebu manager Lee Membwa said residents are welcome to report the abuse of municipal vehicles.
He said the electricity department seeks to cut unneccesary expenditure and keeps the fuel and maintenance costs of vehicles to a minimum.
Mwemba said the municipality’s electricity department has been ensuring it is able to provide free prepaid electricity meter installation for pensioners for the past four years, as well as the conversion of customers to prepaid meters.
This, he said, is available to all Keetmanshoop residents free of charge until the end of June.
“We are looking at a budget increase from N$121 million we utilised last financial year to N$148 million for the 2025/26 financial year to keep improving our networks and provide sufficient customer care services by attending to complaints and damage to infrastructure,” Mwembwa said.
He said tarriff increases were not effected last year following the ECB’s announcement that tariffs for the 2024/25 financial year were cancelled.
As a result, there were no tariff increase for the period 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025 and residents were charged based on the previous financial year tariff, which was in effect from July 2023 to June 2024.
This cancellation of the 8% tarriff increase followed public pressure on the government last year, which then decided to make available N$365 million to subsidise electricity consumers for the 2024/25 financial year.
ECB chief executive Robert Kahimise at the time said the decision came after minister of mines and energy Tom Alweendo engaged the board to collectively consider consumers’ plight.
“In this regard, the government resolved to make approximately N$365 million available to subsidise electricity consumers for the 2024/25 financial year, effective 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025,” he said.
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