Ashanti West ECG worried about influx of fake meters

The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has expressed worry over the influx of fake electricity meters in the Ghanaian market.It has therefore, cautioned the public against the illegal sale, distribution and purchase of fake meters by some individuals in the Ashanti region.Mr Maxwell Dapaah, the General Manager in charge of Ashanti West Region of ECG, said the Company had noticed with grave concern how some individuals were flooding the area with fake meters, but steps were being taking to clamp down on such illegality.In an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Kumasi, he said working together with the security agencies, some of the substandard meters had been confiscated at the Dabala checkpoint, during a thorough inspection of a bus heading to Kumasi from Aflao and at the Tech Junction in a VIP bus.Mr Dapaah said checks revealed that the meters were coming from Togo and warned that the law forbade private individuals from installing their own electric meters without recourse to ECG.Again, such m eters installed would not be captured into the ECG system for purposes of billing and other commercial activities; thus, meters installed by individuals constituted an illegality and the company would take action to clamp down on the installation of such devices.Mr Dapaah said the installation of such fake meters was having negative effects on the commercial and technical operations of the company.'It is illegal to import meters into the country and acquire meters from other sources apart from ECG.We will take all necessary legal actions against individuals trying to infiltrate our network with these fake meters, including those who aid them by selling or buying them,' he stated.He advised ECG customers to avoid purchasing such meters or dealing with third parties when they needed meters and rather, visit ECG offices for such services.Mr Dapaah called on the public to assist the company to win the war against the influx of fake meters in the systemSource: Ghana News Agency