The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has been compelled to deploy credit meters to Oborpa, a farming community in the Eastern Region.
The deployment of the meters followed more than a year of a stand-off between the people and the company after the latter failed to provide the meters to homes more than a year after paying for the meters.
Despite embarking on an electrification project to the community between 2016 and 2020 with the provision of a transformer in 2020, the residents had no option but to continue to sleep in the dark after attempts to get the ECG to provide them with meters to enable them access proved futile.
Notwithstanding the inhabitants paying Ghc150 per household to a ‘contractor’ for the supply of the meters in December 2020, the meters were still not supplied.
The residents lived amidst threats from creatures such as snakes, scorpions, insects, and other creatures that found their way into their rooms.
Dadematse (community leader) of Oborpah, Moses Tetteh Gbertey together with elders of the community three weeks ago served notice of the community’s intents to ‘illegally’ connect power to their homes after it became apparent that the company had no immediate intentions of providing them with the meters and hence depriving them of electricity supply.
“There were plans to connect the power to our homes but we took it upon ourselves to do it illegally. It resulted in a misunderstanding between the community and the ECG but through the support of everybody, we succeeded. Threats to arrest us [over the connections] did not succeed,” said the Dadematse.
Thanking the Akufo-Addo government for the meters, he was confident that the extension of the power supply marked the beginning of the boosting of economic activities in the area. “Now that we have electricity, from two weeks ongoing, the community will see a boost in economic activities through the sales of drinks, iced water, and iced blocks, the rashes we suffered due to sleeping in the heat will cease.
Our children will also use the power to study and power their devices for research and to work to support us at the same time,” said the Dadematse adding that some 400 households are expected to benefit from the project.
A team of ECG personnel led by the Asesewa District Manager were on the ground installing the meters in various homes.
With economic activities underlining the numerous reasons behind demands for the meters, the provision of the commodity to the community is already raising commercial activities with residents beginning to tap into it to run various businesses.
Twenty-eight-year-old Charity Narh has already opened a cold shop. With a single deep freezer, she has already begun selling pure water and minerals.
She told GhanaWeb that despite opening the shop only three days ago, business is already picking up with customers trooping in for chilled drinks to cool their throats.
“I use the electricity to sell drinks such as malt, coke, etc., and sachet water as well,” she said. “Market is going well and when I put the drinks in the fridge, I make a lot of sales.”
Mane of the Oborpah community, Kpabitey Tetteh shared similar views. He was particularly optimistic that the availability of electricity in the community would not only boost productivity but improve healthcare provisions and education.
He said, “Young men and women who have received various apprenticeship training now have the opportunity; the welders, hairdressers, traders, even pure water sellers are going to benefit so the community will grow.
“Snakes and other scorpions that attack us will now stop. The CHPS compound can also now be fully operational,” he noted.
