The ManicaPost
Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
Residents who desperate to have power installed in their homes are falling prey to unregistered and unqualified contractors who also charge inflated prices, The Manica Post has learnt.
Unlike in the past when the then Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA), now Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC), would provide access to electricity to clients’ doorsteps, residents now have to foot power connection bills.
Investigations by The Manica Post revealed that residents, especially those in new suburbs, were forming syndicates and bearing the cost of hardware material such as cables, poles and at times transformers.
They were also hiring private contractors to install the equipment, but it was emerging that during the installation of the power lines, residents have to deal with shoddy workmanship and inflated prices for services and materials from the private contractors.
In one of Mutare’s suburbs (name withheld), cement was being collected from residents on the pretext that it would be used to compact the poles after trenching in an ongoing electrification project.
However, this newspaper established that elementary construction engineering skills used over years do not need even a bag of cement to compact the poles.
Mr Ephraim Madakadze of Chikanga, who is employed as a casual worker at one of the power line installation projects in Mutare’s fairly new suburbs, said: “People are being duped in broad daylight. The contractor is asking for cement, yet we have never used it in compacting the poles.
“After creating the main hole, we drill a smaller one at the bottom. This small hole, which we call ChiKariba, then holds the pole in case it falls. We then use stones, rubble and soil to cover the pole. The cement being collected is extra money for the contractor.”
A Mutare resident in a different suburb where they are also seized with the same project, said: “We did trenching and we placed earthwire, stay wire, shackles and what is left is the conductor cable and the transformer. We have now paid US$245 each to have power in our houses. We are 260 households.”
Basic calculation shows that the contractor has so far pocketed US$63 700 for both the service and material.
Local energy sector expert, Mr Tawanda Chitiyo, who is also the chief executive of Tawanda Energy, a corporate entity into waste to energy, petrochemicals and biogas, said: “It is the responsibility of ZETDC to have all equipment in place as well as install power to new suburbs. Sometimes due to lack of funding, new suburbs can go intoan agreement with ZETDC to hire private contractors to set up the small lines.
“After the installation by the private contractors, ZETDC will workout how much each the customer would have invested and repay the money in electricity units,” he said.
Responding to e-mailed questions, the country’s energy sector regulatory board, Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA), said: “The responsibility to purchase the line materials to enable connection of customers in new suburbs lies with ZETDC. However, there is a policy in place that allows consumers to supply their own equipment for connection and ZETDC is obliged to refund the customers in line with their Commercial Guidelines. The refund is through electricity units credits.
“All customers who supply equipment to facilitate for their own connection are refunded by ZETDC. Customers are encouraged to seek recourse with ZETDC where they do not get refunds. ZETDC has the necessary complaints channels, failure of which ZERA will resolve any disputes as it is currently mandated to do so by current legislation.”
When contacted for comment, ZETDC spokesperson, Ms Prisca Utete requested the questions in writing and upon further inquiries, she said “We are working on your inquiry.”
However, residents interviewed in suburbs that have already been connected in Mutare after using their own resources to secure equipment said they were never refunded, while others said they could not claim refunds since their hands were tied by clauses in agreements and group constitution, documents requested by ZETDC before equipment installation.
Some of the documents stipulate that ZETDC is not obliged to pay for equipment installed by willing customers.
