The Federal Government has given marching order to electricity Distribution Companies (DISCOs) to henceforth stop the practice of collecting money from consumers before the issuing meters to them.
Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, (SAN), made this disclosure when the Director General of Consumer Protection Council (CPC), Mrs. Dupe Atoki paid him a courtesy call in Abuja.
Fashola said he was not comfortable with the Credit Advance Metering System adopted by all the DISCOs in the country, as a result, government had to stop the scheme.
The Minister disclosed that DISCOs are responsible for funding the metering of consumers, argued that much as the consumers are regarded as the king, they must also realize that they have duties to acquaint themselves “with the process under which electricity is now being provided.
It might interest you to know that the CAPMI scheme was adopted to allow customers pay for their meters in return to unit advancement through the fixed charge component of the electricity bill.
His words: “I was not comfortable with the Credit Advance Metering System, and one of our recommendations in our last meeting was that the scheme should be wind down. Those whose money have been collected, they (DISCOs) should ensure that the metres are delivered, and wind down the system.”