Some electricity consumers, on Wednesday in Lagos State decried what they termed 'arbitrary billing' by the Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company for the month of August.

They told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in separate interviews that coded billing by the company was 400 per cent higher than what they charged in July.

Mr Johnson Oladapo, a resident of Mafoluku in Oshodi Area of Lagos, said that the present bill by company did not reflect what he consumed in August.

Oladapo also described the August billing as clear case of extortion by the company and urged it to recall the outrageous bill.

"In June, I received a bill of N3,700 for my two-bedroom flat, in July they brought N7,400 and the August bill currently stood N27,500.

"What is the parameters they are using to billing consumers? The management of the company should as a matter of urgency recall all bills sent out from the month of August because the billing did not reflect what we consumed," he said.

Mr Folorunsho Aremu, a landlord at Abeokuta Street, Ilasamaja, said that he received N40,590 bill for the month of August.

Aremu said that he went to Oshodi Business Unit of the company at Okota area of Lagos to complain about the arbitrary billing but was told by the official there to go and pay the bill.

"Their staff at Okota said that since my meter was not working, I was on coded billing. He told me that they used one figure for all of us in that place and I have to pay that amount.

"My monthly salary is not up to N40,000, where will I get money to pay that huge amount of money?’’ Aremu said.

He said that the official of the company had disconnected him from their electricity pole because he could not pay the bill.

Mrs Alice Kolawole, a frozen food trader at Ikotun market, wondered why the company should bill her N45,000 for one month when she hardly used electricity in her shop.

Kolawole urged the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to overhaul the nation’s electricity billing system and stop crazy billing.

Another consumer from Arowojobe Street, Oshodi, Mr Folorunsho Kuti, urged the company to accelerate the distribution of prepaid meters to their consumers.

"For the past three years, the company has promised to distribute the meters but they have not. They have continued to enjoy coded billing of their consumers who are not on functional meters.

"Going to their unit in my area did not help my case because the officers there said I should pay the August bill of N30,000 for my three-bedroom flat.

"I do not have a factory in my house and I wonder why these people give monthly bills of between N25,000 and N30,000," Kolawole said.

Mrs Franca Okorie, a resident of Amuwo-Odofin in FESTAC Town, urged NERC to sanction the company for their inadequacies.

Okorie said that sanction would reduce the issuance of coded billing and make them to accelerate the installation of prepaid meters.

Mr Pekun Adeyanju, Assistant General Manager, Public Affairs of the company, urged the affected consumers with outrageous bills to visit any of their 10 commercial units for harmonisation of their complains.

Adeyanju said the unit was responsible for billing of their consumers and should be able to resolve the bills.

He also pleaded with electricity consumers under the zone to exercise patience, stressing that the installation of prepaid meters in the zone was ongoing.

[size=13pt]Abuja, Kogi, Niger, Nasarawa To Receive Free Pre-paid Meters[/size]
The Management of the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) has disclosed its plan to distribute 500,000 pre-paid meters to electricity consumers in three states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

A statement by the Head, Public Relations and Media, Ahmed Shekarau said, Dr. Balami Halidu Arhyel, Head, Client Relationship, AEDC, disclosed this when he led a delegation from the company to the Nasarawa State Assembly Committee on Works and Transport in Lafia.

Dr. Arhyel said that the meters would be distributed to the customers free, pointing out that the measure was to ensure transparent and fair billing of consumers.

He said that the distribution of the meters would reduce complaints by electricity consumers on estimated billing, and contribute to the overall development of the country.

He told the committee that the meeting was to honour its invitation for discussions on complaints over estimated billing and other matters made by electricity consumers in the state.

“The company will soon distribute 500,000 Pre-Paid Meters (PPM) free of charge to electricity consumers in Kogi, Niger, Nasarawa and the FCT.

“I want to assure you of the company’s readiness to ensure transparent and fair billing and improved services to our customers,” he said.

Dr. Arhyel said the company had acquired and installed 19 new transformers of different capacities, 140 feeder pillar units, 120 high tension poles and 54 low tension poles in Nasarawa state.

He said that other items were 26,000 metres of aluminum conductors, 30 fiber ladders, 600 metres of cable and 8 drums of transformer oil.

The team leader said that the company did all to ensure adequate and constant power supply across the state.
http://www.theheraldng.com/abuja-kogi-niger-nasarawa-residents-to-receive-free-500000-pre-paid-meters-aedc/