Mass metering: EEDC warns South-East residents against scammers

Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) has cautioned South-East residents against activities of scammers who take advantage of the National Mass Metering Programme (NMMP) to swindle unsuspecting members of the public.

The Head, Corporate Communications, EEDC, Mr Emeka Ezeh, gave the warning on Sunday in a statement made available to newsmen in Enugu.

It would be recalls that NMMP metering programme is an initiative of the Federal Government introduced to close the metering gap.

It was kicked-off in the South-East about 10 days ago with Ogui and Abakpa Districts of EEDC in Enugu metropolis as pilot areas.

Ezeh lamented that barely a week after the commencement of the free mass metering programme, the company had started receiving reports of customers who had been scammed in their bid to get metered.

The EEDC spokesman, however, reemphasised that the modalities for deployment of the NMMP meters would be according to feeders and distribution substations.

Ezeh said that information on this would be made available to customers as the exercise progresses.

He said that about 400 customers had been metered in less than two weeks of the commencement of the exercise.

Ezeh explained that unlike the arrangement with the MAP metering scheme where customers had to apply and pay to be metered; there is no online or offline application for the NMMP.

He added that there is no application form, no processing fee and no meter installation cost.

“We all know that times are hard and some elements in our society have taken to all sorts of nefarious activities to survive, not minding the effects on the system and other citizens; hence, the call for caution.

“There is no way all the unmetered electricity customers can be metered in this initial phase of the metering exercise; it will happen gradually and we appeal to our customers to be patient and avoid becoming prey to these dubious elements.

“We, therefore, implore our customers to cooperate with us as we strive to serve them better.

“They should not hesitate in reporting any of our staff that is requesting them to pay any amount of money to get metered.

“EEDC remains committed to ensuring that the NMMP, which is an initiative of the Federal Government succeeds, and this can only be actualised with the support and cooperation of customers,’’ he said.