Lindeka Nongqayi and Another v King Sabata Dalindyebo Municipality and Others

The applicants, two women residing with their children at erven 117 and 118 (Windsor Hotel, Mthatha), sought urgent relief after the municipality disconnected electricity supply to the premises on 5 May 2025. The properties are owned by the Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC), which had a contractual relationship with the municipality for electricity supply. On 3 December 2024, ECDC lawfully terminated its electricity supply contract with the municipality on four days’ notice, effective 10 December 2024. The applicants were not parties to that contract and did not disclose the legal basis of their occupation or any independent right to electricity supply. They alleged that the disconnection was unlawful because they were not given notice or an opportunity to make representations, relying on PAJA, municipal by-laws, and the municipality’s Credit Control and Debt Collection Policy.

The application was dismissed with costs.

The case clarifies that termination of municipal electricity supply pursuant to the lawful cancellation of a supply contract is a private-law matter and not administrative action under PAJA. It underscores the importance of establishing a substantive legal right before invoking procedural fairness and reinforces the doctrine of privity of contract in disputes involving municipal services.