The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) says its customers who default should soon expect to hear and see their names on radio and in the newspapers respectively.
According to the company, as part of the aggressive revenue collection exercise it is embarking on, it will name and shame in order to recover its money from such defaulting customers.
Speaking at the commissioning of a new Business Centre at Gomoa Oguaakrom in the Gomoa West District of the Central Region, Director of Operations at the ECG, Ing. Tetteh Okine indicated the company has started massive disconnection exercises after issuing notices to all defaulting customers.
Ing. Okine said the company has invested a total amount of 6.4 million in the construction of eleven business centres that have been commissioned across ECG’s operational areas in order to further satisfy their valued customers.
“Our next course of action is to publish the names of all recalcitrant customers in the national dailies and on FM stations. We have resolved to improve our services to satisfy our customers. It will not be business as usual if you owe ECG now. If our customers do default and after several notices to them, they fail to pay, we will proceed to publish their names,” he warned.
The Customer Service Centre commissioned at Gomoa Oguaakrom is one of eleven business centres across ECG’s operational areas in the country. According to the ECG, the centre at Gomoa Oguaakrom was deliberately selected due to its centrality and accessibility to over twelve (12) towns and a number of communities in its catchment centre.
“This project was inspired by Nana Dantse II, the ECG director of Customer service who hails from the area and will provide very vital electricity services to their esteemed customers in the Gomoa Akyempim Traditional area and the surrounding communities stretching from Gomoa Ankaamu (Apam Junction) through to Gomoa Ajumako, Gomoa Nkoransa, Gomoa Obokrom, Gomoa Kumasi, and Gomoa Enyimem. Gomoa Dankyira, Dawurampong, Gomoa Koforidua, all the way to Gomoa Wassa. Gomoa Nkran, Gomoa Asikuma and beyond,” he added.
At the beginning of this year, ECG carried out some comprehensive audit of portions of their distribution network and identified some ‘rogue feeders’. As a result, special projects were urgently executed to rectify the frequently tripping ‘rogue feeders’ to improve ECG’ssystem reliability, ensure operational flexibility, create redundancies and reduce technical losses.
Following the completion and commissioning of the projects, the ECG’s Director of Operations noted that there have been significant improvements in power supply throughout ECG’s operational area.
“In fact, most of our stakeholders have testified privately and the public to the vast improvement in the stability and reliability of electricity supply over the past several months. Encouraged by the modest achievements, we shall continue to work hard to complete all planned projects and initiate new ones to ensure quality service delivery to all our valued customers and economic development of Ghana,” he stressed.
Central Regional Director of the ECG, Abraham Anokye Abebrese said the information and communications technology era has transformed the business landscape of the electricity industry across the world.
According to him, ECG is currently deploying smart solutions in its metering, adding the solutions are driven by robust and high-speed internet connectivity.