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Tariff hike:Give us meters first-an open
letter to Dr. Sam Amadi
Newsdiaryonline Sat June2,2011
A Nigerian citizen Mr.
Daniel A.Onojafe has written an open letter to the CEO of NERC
urging him to take another look at the hike in electricity
tariff which is being done in PHCN’s interest much to the
disregard of the consumers.Onojafe
said in the petition
that:``This protection of PHCN’s interest must be balanced by a
protection of the consumers’ interest.
The consumer must only be billed on actual consumption
basis as measured by a valid meter to be provided and installed
by PHCN. Each consumer must not be compelled by any means to pay
more than he actually consumes in power supplied by PHCN.
Therefore, the pursuit of economic pricing should be balanced by
an equally aggressive action on accurate power consumption
measurement for each and every consumer.
This balance of interests between supplier and consumer
is what your commission, NERC, was created to regulate and
enforce. It is a
responsibility too from which you must not appear to renege.”
Read the full text of
the open letter below:
AN OPEN LETTER TO
THE CEO, NERC
9th June,
2011
P.O. Box 10944
Ikeja.
Lagos State.
Dr. Sam Amadi
Chairman/Chief Executive
Officer
Nigerian Electricity
Regulatory Commission
Adamawa Plaza
Plot 1099,
First Avenue, Off Shehu Shagari Way
Central Business
District
Abuja F.C.T, Nigeria
Dear Sir,
TARIFF HIKE: GIVE
US METERS FIRST
It has been announced by
your commission that electricity tariffs would increase on the
average from N8:50 to N10:00 per Kilowatt hour effective July 1,
2011. We do agree that this may be an economic pricing, all
essential factors well considered as at today.
The tariff hike is to protect the interest of the
electric power supplier, presently PHCN, by ensuring that it
gets adequate returns from its services.
That is good to make the
industry viable and attract foreign and local investors.
However, this protection of PHCN’s interest must be
balanced by a protection of the consumers’ interest.
The consumer must only be billed on actual consumption
basis as measured by a valid meter to be provided and installed
by PHCN. Each consumer must not be compelled by any means to pay
more than he actually consumes in power supplied by PHCN.
Therefore, the pursuit of economic pricing should be balanced by
an equally aggressive action on accurate power consumption
measurement for each and every consumer.
This balance of interests between supplier and consumer
is what your commission, NERC, was created to regulate and
enforce. It is a
responsibility too from which you must not appear to renege.
Since 2005, the PHCN
stopped the provision and installation of the old type analog
meters. The state
power utility body declared the introduction of new prepayment
meters as a replacement.
It was not difficult to convince consumers that this was
a better option based on prior experience of Nigerians with the
GSM revolution and its pay-as-you-go mechanism.
Millions of customers wanted the new meters.
They were tired of being billed on estimates just because
they do not have meters.
Some applied to the point of paying money into the
coffers of PHCN on the promise of the new meters.
Five years have passed and PHCN is yet unable to make the
meters available for interested consumers to obtain.
Yet, the PHCN enforces on hapless customers without
meters an estimated billing system that charges them as much as
five times, sometimes ten times, their actual consumption.
There is no justifiable excuse for PHCN not being able to
provide meters for five years.
It is also criminally culpable and condemnable to bill
any customer for as long as five years without some credible
basis, compelling him to pay higher bills monthly while denying
him the option of a valid meter.
That these crimes are openly committed against the
Nigerian people by a state utility body is unthinkable and falls
far short of transparency and quality service delivery.
Your commission, the NERC, was established to prevent and
correct this kind of shameful anomalies and mediocrity in the
electric power sector.
Furthermore, it is
important to point out that in the last five years, PHCN has
increased tariffs about five times.
We are not asking that PHCN should not raise tariffs as
long as it represents economic realities.
However, to have raised tariffs for the past five years
while doing virtually nothing about ensuring and enforcing a
credible basis of consumption measurement is totally
unacceptable. I
speak on behalf of faceless millions of Nigerians who are
monthly compelled to pay far more than they truly consume just
because they have no meters for the past five years.
Our demand is that we want to be billed commensurate with
our actual monthly consumption. This is the least demand of
equity and justice.
We do not mind if PHCN is not able to supply sufficient power
for our consumption but we can and now rightly insist that we
must not be compelled, for instance, to pay for 200 units of
power while we only consumed 20 units during the month, no
matter the tariff position.
It is pertinent to note here that this country does not
run on PHCN’s electric power; it runs on generators.
It is just cruel to compel a person who has paid so much
on generating power for himself to again be subjected to paying
five times his true billing of PHCN power supply.
PHCN, if there are people with conscience there, ought to
make meters available, giving every customer the option of
purchasing one and being billed accordingly before thinking of
any tariff hike.
PHCN exists for the interests and welfare of Nigerians and must
consistently prove so.
All we are saying is:
Give us meters first.
We are not against tariff hikes.
We are against being billed without meters.
Make meters available to the point that a customer can
walk to the nearest PHCN business unit or undertaking office,
pay for a meter, collect it and install it immediately.
We believe you should endeavour to achieve this little
feat before you implement any further hike in tariffs.
The NERC under your leadership should be able to make
meters abundantly available.
You can make the difference where others before you
failed. Professor
Dora Akunyili made a whole world of difference in her brief
service at NAFDAC.
Nuhu Ribadu made a mark that cannot be easily erased at the
EFCC. You too can.
Our appeal is that you hold back on tariffs hike until you have
made the provision of meters for all, at least as an option.
This open appeal is also
calling on other relevant organizations to stop this gruesome
rip-off by PHCN. We
are calling on the print and electronic media, the Nigerian Bar
association, ICAN, Consumer Protection Council, Consumer Rights
Protection Agency, National Human Rights Commission, SERVICOM,
Civil Society Organizations, Human Rights bodies as well as the
EFCC to get involved in this campaign to arrest this open
financial fraud against millions of Nigerians so we all may
together project the image of a Nation truly founded on equity,
justice and fairness for all.
Thank you for hearing us
out.
Yours
sincerely.
DANIEL A. ONOJAFE
(08033315851,
donojafe@yahoo.co.uk)
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