Ibusa, a community in Delta State, has accused the Benin Distribution Electricity Company of leaving them in total blackout for over seven years for refusing to accept what they called outrageous estimated bills.

Some residents of the community said they have made concerted efforts to restore power sometime in December last year, but the electricity company turned it down.

The power company has not responded to this allegation and outcry coming days after the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission asked electricity consumers to reject any estimated billing from distribution companies, saying such action contravenes the laws regulating the sector.

The Acting Chairman of the Commission, Mr Anthony Akah, gave the advice in Abuja when the House Committee on Power made its oversight visit to the commission.

According to him, the regulation clearly states that electricity consumers have rights to reject estimated bills if the distribution companies refused to install pre-paid metres for their customers.

“We also have a regulation that makes it disincentive for the DISCOS not to metre customers. It says clearly that any customer that has no metre has the rights to reject the estimated bills if he feels that the bill does not reflect the quantity of power that was sent to him.

“However, he has to pay for the last month he agreed and immediately write to the DISCO and copy our office for them to come and prove why they gave him estimated bill that does not reflect what he consumed.

“The DISCO under that circumstance cannot disconnect them and cannot give them further bills until the issue is resolved,” he explained.

Mr Akah also listed some efforts made by the commission to regulate the sector.

After he briefed the lawmakers, they drew the attention of the commission to the need to regulate electricity billing system within the confines of existing laws. (Channels TV)

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