The Consumers Protection Council (CPC) says it is determined to provide a credible platform of electricity stakeholders in the country to resolve the numerous complaints of consumers.
CPCs Director-General Mrs.Dupe Atoki said this at a town hall meeting with electricity consumers and operators on Saturday in Abuja.
She also said that the council was also committed to ensure customer satisfaction in the delivery of electricity services by operators in the country.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the forum, comprising various stakeholders, including consumers from the Lugbe suburb of the FCT, was organised by the CPC and MacArther Foundation.
The forum was designed to hear the various complaints of electricity consumers, ranging from estimated billing, indiscriminate increase in electricity bills, to non supply of meters.
Others include irregular disconnection, non supply of transformers, electrical cables, damage of properties from fluctuation of electricity and unsatisfactorily services by operators in the industry.
Atoki said that the forum was designed to bring together relevant operators in the electricity market industry to address consumer complaints and other issues affecting service delivery in the sector.
She said that the programme was organised to facilitate understanding and cordial relationship between consumers and Electricity Distribution Companies.(DISCOs).
This, she said, was also aimed at facilitating transparency in the relationship between DISCOs and consumers.
She said that the forum would facilitate a seamless interaction between all stakeholders in the sector.
According to her, the partnership with MacArthur foundation will also conduct customer forum in other parts of Abuja and the country to empower consumers and address concerns of operators in the sector.
She commended the active participation of Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission(NERC), Nigeria Electricity Management Services Agency (NEMSA) Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) .
She said that the event had been helpful in resolving crisis and restoring confidence between consumers and servicr providers.
The Managing Director of NEMSA, Mr Peter Ewesor, said it was important for stakeholders to come together to address the challenges inherent in the sector.
He said it was also necessary for consumers to adhere to process of using electricity by ensuring that proper installation of electrical appliances was done by certified engineers.
Ewesor said that the violation of the rules governing electrical installations could result into danger for consumers.
He said that NEMSA was responsible for certifying electrical installation in the country, including the testing and certification of meters before installation.
He called on consumers to report cases of faulty electrical installation to NEMSA, adding that this would help mitigate electrical accidents in the country.
The Director of Corporate Services, AEDC, Mr Abimbola Odubiyi, said AEDC was committed to resolving the complaints of consumers under its jurisdiction.
He assured customers that AEDC was doing everything possible to improve on its services, while also calling for consumers’ support to move the industry forward.
NAN also reports that residents of Lugbe community raised questions on recurrent cases of estimated billing, lack of meters and overloading of transformers..
They also raised issue of double billings by AEDC, among other challenges faced by the consumers. (NAN)