Govt gets tough on power connection
Chief executive officer of Pipe Industries Company Limited, Nassoro Ali Seif (second left), explains about a new product, Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP), to the director of Kahama-Shinyanga Water Supply and Sanitation Authority- KASHWASA), Eng Clement Kivegalo, (right), as part of a one-day workshop to Stakeholders of the water sector held at the firm’s compound in Vingunguti, Dar es Salaam, at the weekend. Left is Pipe Industries head of Corporate Affairs, Jamal Bayser. PHOTO|STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
What you need to know:
- Deputy minister Charles Kitwanga says that it is possible for a customer who has paid the requisite dues and does not need an electricity pole, to get connected within 24 hours
Dar es Salaam. The government has issued a directive to Tanzania Electric Supply Company (Tanesco) to connect customers applying for electricity services within a day.
According to a publication of the Ministry of Energy and Minerals issued on Saturday, the deputy minister responsible for energy, Mr Charles Kitwanga, announced the directive during a meeting with Tanesco executives and the regional commissioner for Coast Region Ms Mwantumu Mahiza, on Friday last week.
Mr Kitwanga said that there was no need for customers to queue for the services when they had already completed the required procedures for electricity connectivity, including payment of required costs.
“In case the customers do not need an electricity pole for electricity connection and yet the required cost has been settled, there is no need for delay in connecting them to the grid.
For such kind of customers they should get the services within a day,” said Mr Kitwanga.
He said Tanesco must offer services at higher quality to cope with the fast growing economy which is set to attain a rate of more than 7 per cent in this financial year.
The deputy minister was touring electricity projects run by the Rural Energy Agency in the Coast Region.
“In case a customer has settled payment at 10.00 am andshe or he does not need a pole, there was no need for delay. It is possible to connect such kind of customers within 24 hours,” the deputy minister insisted.
Regarding customers who are in need of electricity poles, Mr Kitwanga said that they should get connected within three days.
He also urged Tanesco to use electronic tracking and payment system in order to increase efficiency.
The customers who have accumulated debts should not line up in a long queue because with the use of electronic devices it is easy to offer payment services without inconveniences to costomers, says the deputy minister.
For his part, Tanesco manager for Dar es Salaam-Coast zone, Eng. Mahende Mugaya said that the public utlity firm had set a target of connecting 10,000 customers in Coast Region within a time frame of nine months that is between January and September this year.
He said obstacles that have been facing Tanesco in increasing efficiency is tear and wear of electricity infrastructure and customers who have accumulated huge debts.
According to him, until this month Tanesco customers have accumulated debts to the tune of Sh16 billion.
He listed other challenges as payment of compensation for people’s settlements under REA projects and theft of electricity by dishonest customers.
