The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has rejected a proposal by two Krobo groups to declare accumulated electricity bills owed by residents of Yilo and Manya Krobo municipalities as bad debt.
According to ECG, such a proposal is not workable.
A joint statement issued by Kloma Hengme and Kloma Gbi, on Tuesday, demanded that ECG declared accumulated electricity bills of customers in the area from 2014 to 2017 as bad debt or be ring-fenced up to July 2021 “to clean the slate for a fresh start.”
In their view, their proposal was the way forward to bring an end to the current impasse.
The groups explained that “facts remain that between 2018 and today, (during which ECG either failed to serve bills or had difficulty doing so), many tenants changed homes and the difficulty landlords will face in getting these tenants who have moved out to pay such old bills could derail efforts geared towards finding a solution to the challenge at hand.
“In our estimations, these proposals are practical ones that will get people back to pay their bills and solve the problem once and for all. This is more like saying we can and have to make some sacrifices now to safeguard the future,” they are argued.
However, addressing a press conference in Somanya at the Yilo Krobo Municipal Assembly, Managing Director of ECG, Mr Kwame Agyeman-Budu said ECG has had several engagements with stakeholders in the Krobo district and has continually stressed the need for those indebted to ECG to pay their bills.
“Whereas some customers see the need to sustain ECG as a national asset by paying their accumulated bills, others are not paying because they think the power consumed must be free.”
Way Forward
Touching on steps being taken to resolve the current issues, Mr Agyeman-Budu said ECG has since Monday, deployed a team to visit the premises of all customers in the Lower Manya Krobo and Yilo Krobo enclave to undertake meter reading to enable ECG to produce the current bills and also to generate relevant customer statements for the affected periods, carry out pre-installation survey to capture technical data in preparation for the introduction of prepaid meters, as well as to conduct a technical inspection to assure the integrity of ECG’s energy meters within the premises of customers.
He said after the successful reading of the meters, customers would receive their current bills in January 2022 for them to pay promptly.
“Attached to the bills will be their statements clearly showing all the necessary transactions from 2018 to date,” he continued.
He said ECG staff would be stationed at their offices at Somanya, Nuaso, Juapong and other vantage locations to assist customers with the value of their indebtedness and the flexible terms of payment.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
