Bayelsans decry ‘crazy’ electricity billing

By Samuel Oyadongha

Yenagoa—Residents of Yenagoa, Bayelsa State and its environs are disturbed by what they described as arbitrary electricity billing by the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company, PHEDC.

Electricity consumers in the state are lamenting the monthly increase in the billing system even as the power situation remains epileptic.

Most of the buildings in the state capital and its environs do not have electricity meters to determine energy consumption but the PHEDC is charging electricity consumers through unequal estimation of service charge, which most the residents insist is outrageous and unbearable.

Vanguard gathered that the development was causing general discontent among residents and may snowball to street protests.

While some residential areas are allotted estimated bills per building, others are grouped and billed per transformer.

The matter was recently debated on the floor of the state House of Assembly and unanimously condemned by the lawmakers.

The Speaker, Mr. Konbowei Benson, had described the development as unfortunate.

He said: “We are tired of this billing system. We are billed N800,000 every month. There is no meter to show how much we incur every month and if we don’t pay, they come to disconnect us.”

- Culled from: http://www.vanguardngr.com