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The Upper West Regional Office of the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has assisted the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo) in recovering more than GH¢50,000 from its customers in the first half of the year.
Through its engagement activities, the commission facilitated the recovery of GH¢50,659.29 in revenue for NEDCo and also helped some consumers to have their bills adjusted to reflect their actual indebtedness.
Under the period under review, the total adjustment amounted to GH¢1,157.12 and ensured improved service delivery to most parts of the region.
The Upper West Regional Manager of the PURC, Abdul-Wadud Ali, said per the mandate of the commission, it had been engaging stakeholders to enhance collaboration between the service providers and their consumers aimed at strengthening confidence with key partners and protecting the interest of the consumers.
He said all the initiatives undertaken by the commission were to ensure the delivery of quality services to consumers within its operational area.
He said within the first half of the year, the commission received a total of 481 complaints against the service providers and consumers.
He told the Daily Graphic that out of this number, 472, representing 98 per cent of the cases, have been resolved with nine of them at various stages of resolution.
Out of the 481 complaints, only two were against consumers, with NEDCo having the highest number of complaints, 442 lodged against it.Ghana Water Company Limited, on the other hand, had only 37 complaints against it.
“Under the period under review, quality of service dominated the complaints lodged, representing 97.71 per cent; billing and consumer service delivery followed with 0.62 per cent each,” Mr Ali said.
He said the complaints management has strengthened the relationship between the commission and the complainants, built trust between the commission and the consuming public, “thereby establishing a smooth working relationship between the PURC and the regulated utilities.”
In the first quarter, the commission received a total of 247 cases as against 234 in the second quarter and in the first quarter, the total complaints lodged against NEDCo were 218, representing 88 per cent of the cases and those against GWL were 29, representing 12 per cent of the complaints in the first quarter.
