“We are coming for you” — City Power takes aim at corrupt staff

Johannesburg power utility City Power has launched full-scale disciplinary and legal processes surrounding identified financial irregularities, and management is concerned that employees and contractors are involved in cable theft and vandalism in the metro.

In a statement, the power utility says it has identified 15 employees to face disciplinary procedures, with another facing criminal prosecution. It has also identified several implicated contractors and frozen payments to them.

“City Power has launched a full-scale disciplinary and legal process following a forensic investigation that exposed financial irregularities within the organisation,” the utility said.

Sanctioned by CEO Tshifularo Mashava, the investigation uncovered severe breaches in procurement and payment processes and weakening internal controls, leading to financial losses.

City Power notes that the report was submitted to Mashava on 7 March 2025. However, it was leaked to external parties before the organisation could act on its findings and recommendations.

“Findings from the investigation revealed serious irregularities in the procurement system, including fraudulent job numbers, duplicate approvals, and collusion between employees and contractors,” said City Power.

The investigation returned the following key outcomes:

• 15 City Power employees have been identified for disciplinary action, and another faces criminal prosecution;
• Several contractors were implicated in the irregularities. City Power has blocked payments to these contractors and is conducting deeper investigations;
• An ongoing comprehensive audit of all expenditure and contracting work to detect and eliminate other fraudulent activities; and,
• Tightening of internal controls to prevent repeat incidents. This includes centralising procurement approvals and implementing stricter monitoring.

“We have been relentless in our efforts to clean up City Power’s systems. This investigation confirmed what we had long suspected — there were individuals within and outside of the company exploiting weaknesses for personal gain,” said Mashava.

“Some of the challenges we are dealing with are very close to home. We will not tolerate such behaviour as it robs the city and its tax-paying citizens.”

The power utility also said it is concerned that potential collusion between employees and contractors could be behind the cable theft and vandalism crippling City Power’s infrastructure.

City Power says it arrested 279 suspected criminals, including 11 employees, between July 2024 and February 2025, regarding their involvement in cable theft and vandalism.

Three of the individuals have already been dismissed from the power utility.

The power utility said it nabbed two more suspects, including one of its contracts, on Friday, 14 March 2025, after they were discovered opening an electrical supply pillar box without valid authorisation or necessary documentation.

“One of the individuals was in possession of a City Power access card, while the other had no identification,” said City Power.

“Verification by the Project Area Manager confirmed that neither suspect had permission to be on site.”

“The pair was handcuffed and handed over to the local police station where they were charged with a case of tampering with essential infrastructure,” it added.

It said the arrests form part of its sustained crackdown to dismantle the syndicates targeting Johannesburg’s energy infrastructure.

“It’s clear that the collusion between contractors and employees even extends beyond the scope of our investigation,” said Mashava.

“The net is closing in on all internal collaborators who are actively contributing towards reversing the gains we have made in trying to improve the quality of services to the residents of Johannesburg.”

“We are sending a strong message to anyone who thinks they can manipulate the system — we are coming for you,” she added.

City Power’s warning comes after the Auditor General’s (AG) investigation into the utility’s finances revealed significant irregularities.

It also revealed that the power utility lost nearly R5 billion of the electricity it purchased from Eskom in 2023/24, with illegal connections, faulty meters, and billing errors primarily to blame.

However, Mashava also noted that City Power’s ageing infrastructure results in power losses due to heat or suboptimal design, adding that replacing it would be a lengthy and costly project.

The AG’s report revealed electricity material losses of R4.9 billion during the financial year — roughly 30% of its total energy purchases from Eskom.

It also revealed that City Power spent R4.8 billion irregularly, which it attributed to senior management failing to monitor internal financial controls.

City Power also recorded R150 million in wasteful and fruitless expenditure through late payments to Eskom, and the AG revealed that the utility paid R12 million to a politically connected contractor before they did any work.