By Laudia Sawer
Somanya (E/R), Sept. 12, GNA – Officials of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), Krobo District Office, have embarked on a series of customer education programmes at the Somanya Market and its surroundings.
The officials educated the customers on the usage of the newly Clou, and Alpha Waison brands of prepaid meters installed in some communities and answered their peculiar issues on electricity usage.
Madam Sakyiwaa Mensah, ECG Tema Regional Public Relations Officer, told the Ghana News Agency that the ongoing education session was to ensure that customers understood the operations of the prepaid meters.
Madam Mensah added that apart from the one-on-one interactions, the Company was also using the media, information van, and information flyers to reach out to its customers.
The officials during the interaction sensitised the customers on the general ways the prepaid meters work and how different it was from postpaid meters.
They explained that both meters work in a similar fashion with regards to calculating how much electricity had been consumed by a customer, adding however that the major difference was that the prepaid meters required purchases for consumption, while with the postpaid meters, customers consume the electricity, receive a bill before payment.
Customers were advised against tampering with the meters, adding that all ECG meters were monitored by the Company and when discovered perpetrators would be sanctioned
They appealed to customers to allow ECG workers access to meters in their premises for monitoring as it was part of measures to provide quality service to the public.
The customers on their part expressed concerns about the deduction made when they purchase credit, the high cost of getting separate meters, as well as about their debt, and how to go about its payment.
Addressing their concerns, officials explained that the deductions were service charges which were deducted once a month, adding that such monies enabled ECG among others, to handle faults, rendering of non-charged services to customers, and purchasing of equipment needed for better service delivery.
Customers were also advised to petition the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission on any tariff issues as it was the institution mandated to set prices for all ECGs operations.
On the debt payment, ECG officials noted that it would be handled on a customer-by-customer basis, to ensure a unique payment plan for each customer, and were therefore encouraged to visit the office for their convenient payment plan.
GNA