MAKHADO (LOUIS TRICHARDT) – Some nine months ago the Chinese family of Sun Qiu vacated their rented flat in Rissik Street and duly paid-up and closed their municipal account.

There was, however, a slight over-payment of one cent, which ever since is seemingly causing the local municipality an endless problem.

For the past nine months the owner of the vacated flat, Dr Mathew Flynn, has been receiving Sun Qiu’s municipal account, reflecting a total due amount of minus one sent (-0,01).

Dr Flynn says repeated efforts to convince the municipality that it is totally senseless to keep on sending out this monthly account, were in vain.

“They must come, so that we can fix it,” was the response.

It is not known how the municipality intends fixing this weighty, prevailing, though minuscule problem, or what the administrative costs are of sending out such a monthly statement. But, regardless, it continues.

The September statement for Sun Qiu once again reflects an opening balance of minus one cent, a closing balance of minus one cent, with a sub total of zero. The total, therefore, is zero, leaving a total of one cent credit in the Sun Qiu account for September 2004.