City of Johannesburg rejects reports of billing collapse

By Thapelo Molefe

The City of Johannesburg on Thursday rejected “false” and “alarmist” claims that its billing system had collapsed, saying there was no evidence that 1.5 million accounts were affected or that property transfers across the metro had ground to a halt.

In a statement, the city said recent reports had exaggerated billing disruptions and risked causing unnecessary panic among residents, investors and the property sector.

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“These claims are factually incorrect, misleading, irresponsible, and risk creating unnecessary panic,” the city said.

The response follows reports by conveyancers and property professionals who described severe disruption linked to the electronic billing platform, including problems with payment allocation, access to billing data and the issuing of clearance figures needed for property transfers.

Director for communications and stakeholder engagement in group finance, Kgamanyane Maphologela, said the city had found no basis for