Electricity: Unending Rip-Off Of Customers By Distribution Companies!

By Godwin Ijediogor

Some may call it cheating, while others may see it as smart billing but it is nothing less than fraud. The system of billing some electricity consumers, otherwise known as estimated billing, adopted by the Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) in Nigeria, is a clear case of extortion of consumers without metres, whether prepaid or the old order. Ironically, the DisCos are unconcerned and unrepentant, instead they are passing the buck concerning metering to customers. Imagine living in a compound with four three-bedroom flats and while three metred three flats get billed about N2, 500 each, the remaining one is slammed N10, 000 estimated bill, just for one month, by Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC).

Yet, the DisCos are reluctant to provide prepaid meters or at least minimise the incidence of over billing or crazy bills; just promises and no action.  And the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC), Adeoye Fadeyibi, tried to justify the action of the DisCos while speaking at a town hall with residents of Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos (its customers), saying the ‘crazy bill’ was because distribution companies take the reading of electricity consumption of customers who are not metered directly from the transformer.