Hata hivyo, sitaki kukatiwa umeme.

Hata hivyo means however, nevertheless, or even so.

Literally, hata can mean even, and hivyo means something like that way / thus / so, but together hata hivyo works as a fixed expression meaning however.

It is often followed by a comma because it introduces a contrast, just like however, in English.

Yes, sitaki is one word.

It breaks down like this:

• si- = I do not
• -tak- = the verb root want
• -i = the final vowel used in this negative form

So sitaki means I do not want.

This is a very common Swahili pattern.

The basic verb is kutaka = to want.
In the present negative, many Swahili verbs change the final -a to -i.

So:

• nataka = I want
• sitaki = I do not want

That final -i is a strong clue that you are looking at a negative present-tense form.

Kukatiwa comes from the verb -kata, which means to cut.

In this sentence, kukatiwa means something like:

• to have something cut off
• to be cut off from something
• in this context, to have one's electricity disconnected

So kukatiwa umeme is a natural way to say to have the electricity cut off or to have your power disconnected.

This is one of those cases where the most natural English translation is not a word-for-word translation.

Because the meaning is not simply to cut electricity, but to have electricity cut off on you.

Compare the ideas:

• kukata umeme = to cut off the electricity
• kukatiwa umeme = to have one's electricity cut off

The form kukatiwa shows that someone is affected by the action. In this sentence, the speaker is saying they do not want that to happen to them.

So sitaki kukatiwa umeme is closer to I don’t want to have my electricity cut off than to a simple I don’t want to cut electricity.

Umeme means electricity, electric power, or power supply, depending on context.

Swahili does not have words that directly match English a/an and the. So umeme can mean:

• electricity
• the electricity
• power

The context tells you which English version fits best.

Swahili often leaves that idea unstated when the context already makes it obvious.

In sitaki kukatiwa umeme, the meaning is naturally understood as I don’t want my electricity/power to be cut off, because the verb form already suggests that the speaker is the affected person.

So Swahili does not always spell out possession in the same way English does.

After -taka (to want), Swahili very often uses an infinitive phrase.

So:

• sitaki = I do not want
• kukatiwa umeme = to have electricity cut off

Together, they make one smooth structure:

sitaki kukatiwa umeme = I do not want to have the electricity cut off

This is a normal Swahili pattern: verb of wanting + infinitive phrase.

Yes, you could, and it would be natural.

There is a slight difference in focus:

• Sitaki kukatiwa umeme = I don’t want to have my electricity cut off
• Sitaki umeme ukatwe = I don’t want the electricity to be cut off

The first version focuses more on the speaker as the affected person.
The second version focuses more directly on the electricity itself.

Both are good Swahili, but the original sentence is especially natural if you want to stress I don’t want this to happen to me.