Wednesday, May 27, 2009
By Ansar Abbasi
ISLAMABAD: Just contrary to the dicey role of Islamabad Electric Power Company (Iesco) over the power scam in Chak Shahzad’s farmhouses, the Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco) ordered a thorough probe into the matter and thanked The News and Jang for highlighting the issue.
“Such vigilance would go a long way in better customer service and care and implementation of the law by all,” the Pepco said in its press release issued from its Lahore headquarters. All power distribution companies including Iesco are working under Pepco, whose Managing Director is Mr Tahir Basharat Cheema, who also talked to this correspondent on Monday evening and appreciated this newspaper for highlighting the issue of misuse of tariff and power theft by the powerful and the mighty.
Meanwhile, General Pervez Musharraf in an interview with a private television channel on Monday accused this correspondent of being in the habit of filing untrue stories. When asked about the misuse of agriculture tariff by him, he said, “I don’t get involved in such matters. Nor am I interested to save few pennies from such savings. I am paying the official power rates. The story is filed by Ansar Abbasi, who is in the habit of writing such reports. He writes negative reports, which should not be given credence. At my residence in Chak Shahzad there was an old power connection which is being replaced. I checked it today from back home that it would be replaced in a four to six days time. I will pay the official power rates. There was no transformer, which I got installed after paying what I remember something around Rs125,000-150,000.”
Interestingly a few days before Musharraf was uttering these words in a private television channel interview in London, his Chak Shahzad House had already got a new power connection as was confirmed by the concerned SDO on Monday.
The Pepco issued a press release that reads as: “Pakistan Electric Power Supply Company has taken serious notice of the news regarding subject happening in the Iesco, published on 23-05-2009 in daily ‘The News & ‘Jang’ and ordered investigation of the issue through a committee consisting of Customer Services Director (Convener), Manager S&I (Member) & Regional Manager (M&T Concerned).
The Pepco spokesman said that the committee will submit its report within 10 days time. The committee was entrusted:
(a) To thrash out the cases of the farm houses with independent sub-stations situated in Chak Shehzad and surrounding areas and dig out whether the cost of sub-stations has been recovered or not in the original context i.e. at the time of getting power connections.
(b) To see whether the farmhouses have been charged correct tariff after physically verifying the nature of load installed in the premises.
(c) To see whether any conversion of tariff has taken place after installation of connection under some other tariff.
(d) To observe whether the premises have more than one connection to afford undue benefit to the consumers.
(e) To see whether the owners of the farmhouses have been extended undue benefits at the cost of interests of Iesco.
(f) To thoroughly check in any case the matter of the farmhouses to ensure whether the consumers are indulging in any foul play or not.
(g) To also check farmhouses in other areas of Islamabad irrespective of the criteria of provision of independent sub-stations or not.”
The spokesman further stated that corrective action will be taken immediately on submission of the findings against the discrepancies found, if any. The corrective action may include disconnections, recovery of unpaid amounts against capital cost, recovery of less charged bills for any earlier wrong application of tariff and punitive charges etc.
Additionally, disciplinary action will be taken against the officers/officials held responsible for irregularities, if detected at the above sites. Pepco as a responsible organization also considers action against Ex-CEO or any other action as necessary.
The Pepco spokesman also thanked daily “The News & Jang” for reporting the incident and stated that such vigilance would go a long way in better customer service and care and implementation of the law by all.
Source:
Musharraf power scam Pepco puts its foot down
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