The Enugu Electricity Distribution Company PLC (EEDC) has reacted to a news report which broke in an online newspaper - “The Razor”, with the headline “CRAZY BILLS: ANAMBRA CONSUMERS PROTEST AGAINST EEDC”, in respect of a purported protest by Landlords and residents of Okpoko, in Ogbaru Local Government Area, Anambra State, on Tuesday.
This was contained in a reaction made today by the Head of Corporate Communications, EEDC, Mr. Emeka Ezeh.
Ezeh expressed surprise as there was no protest by any such group on Tuesday at any of EEDC offices in Ogabru, Anambra State.
“I wonder what form this purported protest took, as there was no such situation at any of our offices in Ogbaru”, Ezeh affirmed.
While acknowledging that the company has nothing against any group carrying out protest to express their grievances, provided it is done in a responsible and peaceful manner. However, customers are encouraged to exhaust all available redress options before opting for a protest.
He reiterated that EEDC is a regulated business, and as a responsible corporate organization it is guided by laid down rules and regulations as instituted by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC); part of which is the customer Complaint Redress Mechanism framework, which any customer or group that is disgruntled is encouraged to use.
Ezeh described as unethical, a situation where such news reports on a protest that never held is generated and the reporter did not deem it fit to reconfirm or even seek reaction of the other party.
“There was no phone call, email or SMS to my office from anyone on this issue, and yet the reporter went ahead and published the story”, Ezeh lamented.
According to the news report, the protesters were protesting over what they described as, “oppressive, outrageous and overestimated bills”.
Ezeh explained that EEDC bills its customers using the NERC approved billing methodology, however, customers that have issue with their bills have the right to make an official complaint and the issue will be looked into and addressed in line with the customer Complaint Redress Mechanism which is in place at all EEDC Customer Service Units.
On the issue of using security operatives to carry out its operations, Ezeh said that it is only in rare occasions that we engage the services of security operatives to guarantee the safety of personnel, and that only happens in areas where we have notorious and restive customers, who do not pay their bills.
“We have recorded several cases where customers attack our staff, unleashing bodily harm on them, and this we cannot allow to continue.
“The nature of our operation is such that we are not under any obligation to obtain permission from customers to visit and monitor our equipment, provided we are not entering their homes.
We therefore appeal to our customers to try and use the right channels in registering their grievances, and have them resolved instead of resorting to other means.
Reacting to the accusation of extortion, Ezeh said that the company has zero tolerance for fraudulent activities and does not tolerate any form of extortion, stressing that customers are only meant to pay their bills, while the company handles repairs.
“We have continued to educate our customers to be weary of fraudulent elements who extort our customers, and encourage them to report such acts via our Whistle Blowing platforms (08146026678 and ethics@enugudisco.com) for necessary action”.
EEDC is committed to consistently improving its operations and deliver enhanced services to its customers.
Ezeh further appealed to reporters to be objective in their reportage, do some level of investigation and avoid unethical practice of issuing biased and unbalanced reports.
“A situation where a reporter publishes a one-sided report without making effort to balance it by reaching out the other party is not just unprofessional, but unacceptable’.