As the controversy over the adjusted electricity tariff regime continues to elicit reactions from consumers nationwide, most of the consumers have accused electricity distribution companies (DisCos) of fraudulent antics in the implementation of the recently adjusted tariffs.
A news report by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) indicated that some consumers alleged that the electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) were not adhering to the terms of the new tariff regime as directed by the regulator.
Expressing their views on the new tariff implementation in an interactive engagement with the industry regulator on its official Twitter account on Thursday, some customers described the new tariff regime as exploitative.
It would be recalled that the DisCos had announced the implementation of the new Service Reflective Tariff Plan(SRT) across their franchise areas from September 1, 2020, categorising customers into five bands, with bands D and E not enjoying 12 hours of power supply, and not affected by the new tariff plan.
However, the customers in their tweets described the categorisation as unclear while claiming that since the new tariff commenced, power supply has dropped in their areas.
As part of their demand, they urged the DisCos to identify specific areas with their bands and send text messages to customers within those areas in order to stop perceived exploitation of the new tariff order.
Some of the customers projected that the real outrage will be felt when unmetered customers receive their bills for September because the electricity distribution entities failed to implement the capping on the estimated bill.
One of the affected customers, who simply identified himself as Captain, shared the electricity supply report for Sept. 8 under the Ikeja Electric network, claiming that a total of six hours and thirty-six minutes was supplied for the day.
“This is from the DisCo that increased my tariff from N24 to N56/unit on the basis of 16 hours a day supply of electricity,’’ he tweeted.
Bola, another customer, described the new electricity tariff hike as “nothing but pure wickedness’’.
“Over 100 per cent hike? I just bought Kilowatt I used to buy for N2, 000 for over N5, 000. “There is load shedding in my area (two days on and one day off) and there is no guarantee of 15 hours at the two days on,’’ “she tweeted.
Another customer, Olumide Adeniyi, said it was difficult to understand the operations of the DisCos.
He tweeted: “Before the introduction of the new tariff, power supply in my area was about 18 hours in a day. At present, we barely have it for four hours and the tariff has gone up. Ridiculous!!!”
Another customer of Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company, Mr Ibrahim Bawa, said the tariff had been reviewed but the supply has not been improved.
“I currently pay more than N50/Kwh but get less than 10 hours. If DisCos cannot provide up to 12 hours then revert to old rates.”
Similarly, a customer being serviced by the Jos Electricity Distribution Company, Mr Ajiji Ishaya, said electricity supply remained the same in his area even when the Disco is demanding higher payment for electricity consumed.
He tweeted: “The day the tariff started on Sept. 1, we suddenly had uninterrupted power supply for like three to four days which I thought was real. “And then @josdisco confirmed my fears, things came back to normal in the last few days. We even completed 24 hours without light yesterday.’’
In its response to the tweets, the NERC thanked the customers for sharing their experiences, adding that it had communicated the complaints to all DisCos.
It tweeted: “We expect that you will see details shared with the public soon.’’
