The Makhado Municipality wants its millions back.

The members of the Soutpansberg Ratepayers Association (SRPA)  have been withholding certain portions of their municipal account payments, following a dispute declared in August 2008 regarding poor and nonexistent service delivery.

Instead, the SRPA members paid the monies into a trust account that has accumulated to a total of close to R6 milliion, and not R10 million as portrayed in some media reports.

The Makhado Municipality, through its attorneys, has now demanded payment of all the arrears accounts withheld by the SRPA members, within seven days of their letter dated 29 April. The municipality's attorneys have also confirmed that they had already received instructions to proceed with debt collection against the members of the SRPA, but they are awaiting an urgent response.

The demand is based on the Constitutional Court’s judgment in the case between Rademan and the Moqhaka Local Municipality.

“From the Constitutional’s Court’s judgment, it is quite clear that the Rate Payer Association members cannot dictate which portion of their accounts they like to pay and which portion not. As the Makhado Municipality’s Credit Control and Debt Collection by-Laws were promulgated, the Makhado Municipality is entitled to enforce the by-Laws and demand payment of the arrear amounts on the accounts of the Soutpansberg Rate Payer Association members as well as from any other consumers whose accounts are also in arrears,” writes the attorney, Johan Hamman senior of Hammann-Moosa Incorporated.

SRPA Chairperson Inga Gilfillan has said that they are in discussions with their advocate. “While we are in discussion with our advocate, we are considering all our options. In the meantime, we are busy with our normal process of the reconciliation of accounts. At our meeting of 15 May, we will obtain a mandate from our members as to our actions, because this is a serious matter with far-reaching implications,” Gilfillan said.

The Makhado Municipality also demands that the SRPA “abandon the interim Court Order in the case of Makhado Municipality vs Enslin and Du Plessis.” The SRPA obtained a court order on 3 February 2012 that the electricity supply of the above-mentioned members be reconnected and that the electricity supply of their members not be terminated.  The court order followed a settlement reached between the municipality and the SRPA. The settlement was proposed by the municipality. The municipality later filed an answering affidavit to oppose the matter. The court date was set for 18 February this year, where the judge had to decide whether the conditions of the settlement should be made permanent or not, but the advocate of the SRPA asked for a postponement of the case.