The controversy sur
rounding fraudulent billing system by Electricity Distribution companies (DISCOS) across Nigeria has assumed a new dimension as tenants have issued a 48-day ultimatum to Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to investigate allegations of fraudulent billing by the Port Harcourt  Electricity Distribution Company (PHEDC) on power consumers or face mass protest.
In an exclusive interview with The Tide, Friday in Port Harcourt the Executive Secretary, National Union of Tenants of Nigeria, Mr Caesare Enwefah, accused PHED corporate of fraud and threatened that the union would mobilise for local, national and international mass action against NERC, if it fails to investigate the body’s complaints of inflating bills of consumers against PHEDC.
Enwefah stated that the union had written to the Managing Director of PHEDC since 11th August based on complaints from Port Harcourt residents and prayed that the company should cease forthwith the practice of indiscriminate estimation of units of power  consumed but that the management has not responded.
The management having failed to comply, it is now an issue with NERC. Their intention is that we shall go to court, but we shall not. We’re giving a 48-day ultimatum to NERC to investigate the allegation and to wind up PHEDC if found guilty,”.
He threatened that at the expiration of the ultimatum, if NERC does not take action, the union would organize local, national and international action.
He explained that the management of PHEDC is only interested in giving their staff revenue target and to enable them meet the target they do not care about fair billing but go about issuring indiscriminate bills to consumers.
“What they do is give light two or three days to the time of issuing bills and  switch off thereafter and the  masses keep paying for services not rendered”, he maintained.
On why the body would not go to court with the poor company, the tenants boss said the law do not allow consumers to go to court because electricity companies were not by law liable to give light but that the issue is that they should charge consumers according to services rendered.
A letter of complaint, the body wrote to the Managing Director of PHEDC said, “we act in response to complaints received from Port Harcourt residents alleging unfair billing practice by your company in terms of demanding for power not used.
Our investigation of the mater confirms that, contrary to the docrine of pay-as- you-consumer, your company has deviated from the traditional reading of meter to the practice of arbitrary estimation of bill for residents.
The letter which was made available to The Tide was copied to NERC chairman / CEO, DG standard organisation,  Minister of Power , House committee of Reps for Power, Rivers state Governor and Special Adviser to the President on MDG amongst others .
This practice, the letter stated violates the Electronic Power Sector Act, official Gazette No. 104 vol. 94 which prohibits the company from estimating bill for consumers save for certain explicable conditions and noted that such practice was a clever exploitation of the poor masses.
Take notice thus that unless your company yields to the request herein made, we shall as from September 2014 advise all tenants in Port Harcourt to ignore any further estimated billing by your company, the letter said.
The letter further reminded PHEDC that residents of Port Harcourt could be unwilling to pay light bill for 16th July to 8th August 2014 as light was not supplied in the period stressing that any attempt to disconnect any tenant for non payment degenerate to illegal enforcement of payment for service not rendered.

Chris Oluoh