The Volta Regional Revenue Protection Manager of Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) Limited, Ing William Addey has said the outfit has recorded an increase in revenue by about 10 percent following the adoption of mechanisms to block revenue leaks in the system.
Ing Addey, who identified illegal connections and tampering with the metering devices as some of the ways consumers siphon electricity to defraud the company, said control mechanisms were intensified between 2016 and 2017 and have yielded dividends.
He said, although such illegalities are not rampant in the Volta Region, the company was committed to clamping down the few miscreants in the system.
“In terms of illegal connections, the Volta Region unlike places like Accra, Tema, Ashanti, Western Region and other, we don’t record so many cases. Not because the people are not involved in the illegal act, but our activities have been fighting the few that are engaged in it. We visit homes, shops, offices unaware and we make sure we arrest offenders and ensure they are dealt with per the laws,” he said.
Speaking to Citi News in Ho, the Revenue Protection Manager said as a result of the intensive surveillance, revenues generated have shot up from GHc 162,382.80 in 2016, to about GHc 181,336.85 representing a 10.45 percent increment.
The Volta Regional Manager, Ing Joseph Mensah Forson, said his experience ever working with the Unit that fights illegal connections exposed him to the psychology of consumers who are susceptible to stealing electricity.
He cited sheer greed especially on the part of factories and wealthy individuals who would want to maximize profits or meet their insatiable desires through dubious means.
He also attributed the act to desperation for supply without waiting for approval from Authorities and the inability of some ECG Officials in restoring faulty Meters.
Ing Forson, who is due for a transfer from the region to Tema, assured the public that his successor would, through teamwork, sustain and improve the quality of service ECG delivers to the people of the Volta Region.
He also implored electricity consumers to continue to support the company by helping fight illegal connections.
–
By: King Nobert Akpabli/citifmonline.com/Ghna