The Electricity Company of Ghana has expressed concern about a worrying increase in meter tampering across the country, which is resulting in significant technical losses for the company. During a press conference on Monday, February 3, the company reported that in Dansoman alone, around 10% of the 70,000 installed meters have been tampered with. This tampering has caused these meters to under-record electricity consumption.
David Boadi Asamoah, the Acting Managing Director of ECG, issued a strong warning regarding illegal activities. He emphasized that anyone caught participating in such actions would face severe legal consequences. “We will conduct thorough investigations, and there are laws in this country. Once our investigations are complete, law enforcement agencies, such as the police, will take over. After the police finish their work, the case will proceed to court, where the relevant laws will be applied because stealing is a criminal offence,” he stated. He also assured that no one involved—whether a contractor, electrician, or customer—would be exempt from accountability.
“I must assure you, that the ECG will not spare anybody, being it a contractor, an electrician or whosoever if you are caught in this you will not be spared, so from what we have seen, we will run after them and the beneficiary will also have their share ” David Boadi Asamoah lamented the impact of such unpatriotic acts on ECG’s operations, stating that collusion between customers and some contract workers to manipulate meters is undermining the company’s financial stability and, by extension, the country’s economic growth.
He bemoaned the fact that such unpatriotic behaviour by customers who collude with contract workers of ECG to render meters dysfunctional is affecting their operations and, by extension, eroding the gains of the state. The government has set in motion plans to privatize ECG to cut losses and enhance efficiency. Despite a divided front on this subject, ECG, in its current state, is struggling due to numerous illegal activities and power theft. The Acting Managing Director, Asamoah, called for a robust plan to curb system losses.
By: Fred Duhoe
