The Consumer Protection Council [CPC] has warned the management and staff of the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission [NERC] to henceforth, desist from collecting illegal electricity bills and charges from consumers or face severe sanctions and prosecution.
CPC equally said that any reported case of unlawful disconnection of customer’s electricity will be treated as a case of sabotage.
Recall that electricity consumers across the country complained about illegal extortion of monies by staff of NERC through over-billings and outright illegal disconnections of electricity with unsubstantiated claims.
This has continued to make life unbearable for electricity consumers, a situation the CPC has said must change.
The Director-General, CPC, Babatunde Irukera gave the warning recently in his address at the town hall meeting which brought together, Consumer Protection Council, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, the Nigeria Electricity Management Service, the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company and electricity consumers in Bwari, Abuja.
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Irukera said: ‘’We Nigerians have lived long time with poor supply of electricity, we are dissatisfied with this. It is more on what happens in the distribution components; people complain more about illegal bills, they complain more when they are disconnected if their neighbours fail to pay their bills.
So if you discourage people who pay bills because of some who refused to pay, you are giving them a very bad service, this must stop’’.
He explained that it is unfortunate that in Nigeria, the most vulnerable are the poor people in the country who desire to also enjoy electricity in their homes.
He said because electricity is an essential public utility, CPC is now saying that all illegal practices by NERC officials in this regard must stop or face appropriate sanctions.
The CPC helmsman however cautioned electricity consumers to henceforth avoid electricity theft and vandalisation, as well as put a stop to illegal connections.
He said government was monitoring all electricity operations across the country stressing that any consumer caught will face severe penalties.
In his remarks, a Commissioner with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, [NERC], Dr. Moses Ariga assured the forum that come April 3rd, 2018, the electricity distribution companies [DISCOS] will cease to distribute electricity meters but focus more on collection of payments of bills from customers.
Source: G Business
