Accra Oct. 29, - The Electricity
Company of Ghana (ECG) and Volta River Authority (VRA) say they do not have in
their custody any official document exempting the people on Krobo land from
paying electricity bills.
The two bodies have therefore
challenged some youth on Krobo lands to produce the Memorandum of Understanding
(MOU) exempting them from paying bills.
Speaking to the Media in Accra,
Mrs Gertrude N. Koomson, Manager, Corporate Communications, VRA said she was
not aware of any MOU adding “I am also trying to look for it, We want to know
the signatories, venue, time and date that the MOU was signed.”
According to her, the VRA had
records concerning resettlement and compensations that were to be paid to
people but, ‘We do not have any records exempting the people of the Krobo land
from paying bills.’
Nana Arthur Forson, Director of
Customer Service, ECG told journalists in Accra that the company had not come
across any MOU exempting them from paying bills, adding that the mandate of the
company is to procure power from VRA and other power producing firms and sell
same to consumers.
On the high bills payments on
Krobo lands, Mr Forson admitted that the problem was a national issue following
the procurement of a new software billing system but the company’s management
had delegated senior personnel to rectify it.
“Currently ECG is continuing with
public education on its billing system and any problems facing its customers in
Krobo area addressed by ECG customer Care services.”
Nene Sakite II, Konor of Manya
Krobo at the 2017 Mgmayem festival durbar held during the weekend expressed his
regrets that traditional rulers have been blamed over sky rocketing bills.
According to Nene Sakite, he was
also not aware of any MOU between the VRA and the Traditional Council exempting
him and his people from paying Bills.
He therefore urged all those who
have knowledge of the said MOU to make it available for him to swiftly act on.
The Konor of Manya Krobo appealed
to the VRA to publish whatever they have on the payment of electricity
concerning the people of Krobo.
Meanwhile, some youth group of
the krobo land maintain that there was an MOU between their predecessors, the
VRA and former head of State, Dr Kwame Nkrumah in 1963.
According to Mr Joshua Ogborjor,
Spokesperson, Concerned Krobo Youth at Somanya insisted that the “chiefs of
Krobo land have the MOU and will by November 15, this year produce same.”
“From 1848, till this time all
the records are there. I am very sure that the MOU exempted the people of Krobo
from paying electricity bills.”
Mr Teye Kwao Kaismu, Public
Relations Officer of United Krobo Foundation was not happy about the plight of
the people of Krobo.
According to him, during the
construction of the Akosombo and Akuse Dams, almost all their farm lands and
produce were destroyed and a handful of people had been compensated.
He deplored the huge ECG bills
passed on the people of Krobo saying they could not pay them because most
residents were jobless.
Mr Kaismu alleged that there were
other communities that were not paying electricity bills.
The Public Relations Officer of
the United Krobo Foundation is of the view that “whether there is an MOU or
not, there is the need for stakeholders go back to negotiating table following
the takeover of our land by VRA.”
In May this year, some youth groups
demanded for MOU between the Krobos and the VRA from the chiefs of Yilo Krobo
and Manya Krobo following the irreversible damages caused by the Akosombo and
Akuse Dams.
The groups also demonstrated
against the huge electricity bills posed on their people.
GNA
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