The short answer Different municipalities have their own policies. Check with yours and if you can apply, discuss installing a pre-paid meter with your landlord. The whole question Dear Athalie I am a pensioner renting a granny bedsitter on a property shared with my landlord. I'm worried about how much my landlord is charging me for water and electricity. He charges me R3...

Fire victims say they are likely to spend a second night outside because they don’t have material to rebuild their homes By Nokulunga Majola A woman died and a teenager sustained serious injuries during a fire that destroyed 49 shacks at Marikana informal settlement in Cato Manor on Sunday. The families say they are unable to rebuild their homes and will...

One resident says she has to buy buckets of water daily from other community members with boreholes By Bernard Chiguvare Hundreds of protestors marched to Makhado Local Municipality offices in Louis Trichardt on Monday to demand a regular supply of clean water, that sewage be fixed timeously and that roads be fixed. The municipality promised to resolve the water issues in...

Upper Xhwili near Mthatha has no electricity, piped clean water or decent roads By Chumani Mazwi Residents of Upper Xhwili village have been waiting since 1998 for electricity, access to clean water, and proper roads. The villagers say they have raised these issues with five successive councillors, but there is no progress. Upper Xhwili is 40km outside of Mthatha. Before the villagers were...