Consumers complain electricity bills have gone through the roof ever since the national power company replaced analog metres with digital metres. Are the metres installed over the last one year at fault?
Consumers complain electricity bills have gone through the roof ever since the national power company replaced analog metres with digital metres. Are the metres installed over the last one year at fault?Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherket (DABS), the national power company’s officials insist the metres are not at fault, but some Kabul residents ask how come their electricity bills have shot up from 500 Afs to 10,000 Afs?
Satar, a consumer, says, “Last year our electricity consumption was only 800 Afs (nearly 19 USD) per month, but now it is more than 5,000 Afs (86 USD) when we have only one TV and one bulb, which is sometimes on and sometimes off.”
Fahim from Taimani in Kabul says, “Since the metre was changed it shows consumption of electricity has increased. It’s as if the new metres are recording electricity conservation and not use!”
He pinned the blame on “metres that have been made in India”.
Satar from Rustam Haidari township in Parwan-e-Se, Kabul, accused DABS of looting people instead of providing affordable power.
There are also complaints from Members of Parliament (MPs) like Asadullah Saadati from Daikundi. He said his bill last month was 60,000 Afs (1,038 USD).
Abdul Satar Darzabi, MP from Jawzjan says he has asked DABS to explain the new tariff structure but has not received a proper response. He believes DABS does not want to admit to a “technical problem in the metres purchased from an Indian company”. Neither Darzabi nor anyone else would give either details of the Indian company or information on who would know more.
“There are signs of vast, administrative corruption in DABS but authorities are not willing to take responsibility,” he says again without providing evidence.
Hard to pin responsibility
It has been four years since DABS was set up as the national power company. But the power utility continues to speak in many voices.
Mirwais Alemi, business director of DABS, does not wish to identify by name either the company or “donor” through whom the metres came to DABS. He thinks “some” India-made metres may be faulty because DABS was not able to supervise the purchase.
“As the metres were provided by donors to Ministry of Power and Energy, which handed them over to DABS, the company has distributed it in different parts of the city,” he says.
He says the company also distributed a metre called 300000 that was purchased from a Chinese company and distributed after a technical inspection. There have been no complaints from consumers.
However, engineer Mohammad Hamayoon Kohistani, director of planning department in the Ministry of Water and Energy points out the power company is independent of the Ministry of Power and Energy. Under the rules of procurement, DABS has to clear all purchases made for the company’s use. “How is it possible that DABS does not know the metres were purchased? All donors are dealing directly with the power utility.”
Meanwhile, Engineer Abdul Wakil Naseri, head of Kabul Electricity, insists the Ministry of Power and Energy, as a shareholder in DABS, continues to exercise the right to sign big agreements with donors.
According to Naseri, “An Indian company has given 41,000 metres under supervision of GFA, a consulting company to Ministry of Power and Energy. The ministry has handed over the metres to DABS after inspection. There are documents to prove this.”
He adds that if there are technical faults with the metres, “it is the responsibility of the Indian company” under the agreement.
Alami, business director of DABS, and engineer Naseri, both acknowledge the Indian metres have been distributed to consumers. But DABS director Abdul Razaq Samadi denies this was ever done. In fact, Samadi says the company does not have any such metre!
More crossed wires
DABS authorities say the cost of reaching electricity to the consumer is its responsibility. But there are documents and other evidence to prove that some officials have been conniving with local leaders to dupe customers.
Farid Mukhtar, a resident of Kabul’s 13th District, says neighbourhood and mosque representatives have been collecting money from locals for the past one year. No one knows where the money has been going.
Moreover, according to Farid, a person called Hajji Salman collected 1,800 Afs (31 USD) from every house to “buy land for an electricity tower”. This is curious since towers are DABS’ responsibility.
Killid spoke to Hajji Salman who has documents to prove his assignment was genuine. He says he was told by a delegation from DABS which included three engineers – Safdar, Malek and Sultan – that the land should be provided by the people and the tower would be constructed by DABS.
He insists the money was collected as directed by the power company; also 80 sq metres of land for the construction of electricity tower.
Contrary statements
Mirwais Alami refutes Hajji Salman’s statement. “No one has the right to collect money on behalf of the national power company. The construction of towers, wiring and installation of metre are all the responsibility of DABS and not the responsibility of the people,” he says.
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