Avoid wasteful use of utilities - PURC urges Cape Coast Technical University students

The Executive Secretary of the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC), Dr Ishmael Ackah, has appealed to students to avoid wastage in the use of utilities.

He explained that the availability of services impacted everyone, and that wastage in one area could affect supply elsewhere, saying the efficient use of the utilities was critical to the country's socio-economic development.

Dr Ackah was speaking at a tariff education forum in Cape Coast for the Cape Coast Technical University.

He indicated that often students did not care much about the efficient use of utilities, especially on campuses, thereby wasting water and leaving lights on in empty rooms.

He further urged consumers to desist from illegal connections to utility lines, saying they impacted negatively on the operations of the utility companies.

He indicated that apart from the fact that such acts were criminal it impeded the efficiency of the utility companies and eventually affected the provision of service.

Dr Ackah stated that while the PURC was committed to ensuring that utility service providers offered good services to the public, it also owed it a duty to ensure service providers were supported to deliver.

He explained that the PURC’s quarterly review of electricity and water tariffs was to reflect changes in macroeconomic variables such as inflation and exchange rate, adding that the commission would take all variables into consideration before any upward or downward review was done.

The forum urged the PURC to continue the public engagement to ensure the efficient use of utilities.

It also urged them to get the service providers to improve their quality of service.

Service providers

Dr Ackah's visit also took him to the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) and the Electricity Company of Ghana.

At GWCL, Dr Ackah said one of the key challenges was arrears, which was impacting operations and called for a payment plan discussion with public agencies to recover arrears.

The Regional Chief Manager of GWCL, Seth Eric Atiapa, expressed worry over galamsey activities and sand winning along some water bodies, which was affecting the operations of the GWCL, and called for intensified efforts to reduce the menace.