In a bid to recover monies owed by customers and also curb the illegal connection of electricity in Ghana, the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has embarked on a nationwide exercise to collect outstanding debts and ascertain the condition of all meters. The task force, which is responsible for the exercise, also takes the opportunity to check for illegal connections.
On Tuesday, the task force discovered an illegal connection at the police barracks in Osu, Accra, where three blocks had been connected to power without a meter. As a result, the ECG task force immediately disconnected the blocks.
According to the manager in charge of external communications at ECG, Laila Abubakari, “since it’s an illegal connection, we have the first right to disconnect before we deal with issues.” She further explained that the Ghana police would have to visit ECG to generate a bill for them covering a period of 12 months. Power will be restored to the affected blocks once the surcharged amount is paid.
However, the administration block of the police barracks owes a debt to ECG, but due to security implications, the block was spared from disconnection while further discussions were being held to determine the amount involved. The disconnection exercise is in its second week of the month-long national exercise aimed at retrieving GH¢5.7 billion on the ECG’s books.
The ECG Revenue Mobilization Taskforce encountered resistance during their exercise at the Ghana Post Company’s main office when staff prevented them from leaving after they disconnected the office’s power over GH¢89,000 debt. The task force was held hostage for about 30 minutes before they were allowed to leave.
The ECG has been grappling with financial challenges, which have resulted in the accumulation of significant debts owed to various entities. This has led to regular power outages and affected the quality of power supply to consumers. The nationwide exercise by the ECG task force is aimed at curbing the issue of debts owed and illegal connections, which will ultimately improve the company’s financial position and ensure better power supply to Ghanaians
 has embarked on a nationwide exercise to collect outstanding debts and ascertain the condition of all meters. The task force, which is responsible for the exercise, also takes the opportunity to check for illegal connections.){kind=link}