The Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has encouraged tertiary institution students to assist in identifying and reporting cases of illegal electricity and water connections.
Dr. Ishmael Ackah, the Executive Secretary of PURC, made this appeal while also advising students to promptly settle their utility bills.
During his address to students at Koforidua Technical University (KTU) on August 29, 2023, Dr. Ackah emphasized the importance of paying utility tariffs and the role students can play in reporting unauthorized connections.
He also highlighted the incentive of a 6% reward on the recovered revenue from illegal connections for whistleblowers.
Dr. Ackah explained that by fulfilling their billing obligations, utility companies can generate the necessary revenue to enhance their service delivery to the public.
“In the Eastern Region alone, water consumers owed about GH¢46 million”, Dr Ackah said.
Alhaji Jabaru Abukari, the Eastern Regional Operations and Consumer Services Director at the PURC, encouraged consumers of utilities to report any grievances they have with their landlords to the PURC for resolution.
Professor David Kofi Essumang, the Vice-Chancellor of Koforidua Technical University (KTU), expressed his satisfaction with the program.
He noted that approximately 90% of his students resided in rental accommodations, and issues related to the payment of electricity and water bills often led to conflicts between landlords and students.
“We in KTU use more electricity in training our students and the way PURC is considering industries, we are also appealing to them to also consider the tertiary institution to help reduce utility bills since the universities are also training the human resource of the country”, he said.
Prof. Essumang commended the PURC for providing their students with education on how to calculate energy consumption and associated costs using the PURC Electricity Consumption Estimator (PECE) application.
The PURC visited the university to interact with, educate, and promote the payment of utility bills among the students. They also encouraged the students to educate their parents about the importance of paying utility bills.
The event, which was attended by university lecturers and administrators, provided students with the opportunity to ask relevant questions about utility services, and they received comprehensive answers to enhance their understanding of the topics discussed.