New billing system robbery through technology – Baako

Editor- in-Chief of the New Crusading Guide Newspaper, Kweku Baako Jnr, has described the new billing software introduced by the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) as a classic case of institutionalized robbery against Ghanaians by means of technology.

According to him, the system has been turned into a situation where it is stealing from Ghanaians, as the citizens are being over billed.

Government has instituted a taskforce to monitor and audit metering system of both domestic and commercial electricity consumers.

The role of the taskforce, according to the Deputy Power Minister, John Gyinapor includes ensuring that all meters reflect the appropriate tariffs. The team would also investigate the high consumption of credit and overbilling.

The taskforce was instituted following many complaints from power consumers concerning the rapid consumption of credit, faulty meters, and over billing.

Many have raised concerns about the new meters being rolled out by the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), with some threatening to resist any attempt by the ECG to replace their old post-paid meters with the new pre-paid meters.

They say the new meters come with its own faults, reads very fast thereby consuming much credit within a shortest possible time.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Newsfile show on Saturday, Kweku Baako Jnr stated that deplored the situation urged government to immediately remedy the status quo as Ghanaians are being unduly punished.

“I’m being honest with you, Ghanaians are dying. It just doesn’t make sense to me whether it is post paid or prepaid. There’s something fundamentally wrong, so that it why I endorse the initiative by government to check the metering system, doing auditing, the Cabinet meeting… that’s all okay. It just shows that there’s a problem, perhaps we slept for far too long.

“But the damage that has been caused to our pockets and to industry is huge. I’m being brutally frank with you; it’s no joke. Something is wrong somewhere, the system itself has been turned into a situation where it is stealing us, we should be very careful; I’m just restraining myself because I know what we’re going through.”