Jos DisCo to customers: Meter installation free… report staff demanding fees

Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JEDC) says customers should not pay for the installation of prepaid meters.

Nasir Faskari, the meter asset provider (MAP) desk officer of JEDC franchise area, gave the warning over the weekend during an interview with NAN in Jos.

Faskari said customers within its network coverage in Bauchi, Gombe, Benue, and Plateau “should not make any form of payment for the installation as it was absolutely free of charges”.

He urged customers to report any of its personnel who demand fees for prepaid meter installation.

Speaking on ways to get a meter from the company, Faskari said the customer would need to be registered.

“The procedure for acquiring meters doesn’t exceed 24 hours and it’s also free of charges,” he said.

Faskari said the client is meant to fill a form, stamped by a licensed electrical contractor who wired the house to certify that the wiring of the house or structure is up to standard.

He said after registering and acquiring an account with the company, the client is required to subscribe to the MAP — a programme initiated by the federal government for customers seeking meters.

The officer said a customer obtaining a single-phase meter would pay N88,000 only; while a three-phase meter costs N154,000 only.

Faskari said the company ensures that the customer gets the prepaid meter within three days after making payment as they are readily available.

He also said the government had mandated the company to pay the customers for the meter, however, the firm does not give clients cash.

“We give the cash to customers in the form of free energy tokens once every month, the customer vends until the N88,000 or N 154,000 is exhausted,” he said.

Speaking on maintenance, Faskari said if the meters and vending monitors purchased under the MAP scheme gets damaged from no fault of the customer, and falls within the warranty period, the customer would have the meter or monitor replaced immediately at no cost.

The officer said the meters have a warranty of 10 to 12 years.