PURC Sets Up Public Education Body

A PRESS Corps to report on utility services delivery in the country has been inaugurated in Accra with a call on members to promote public understanding of the activities of the Public Utility Regulatory Commission (PURC) and utility organisations in the country.

The corps, an initiative of the PURC, has 10 media practitioners as members. They are Felix Dela Klutse, Daily Guide, Francis Asamoah Tuffour, Ghanaian Times, Michael Donkor, Daily Graphic, Christian Akorlie, GNA and Kojo Hayford, TV3.

The others are Sammy Dako Appiah, Joy FM, Fati Shaibu-Ali, Metro TV, Edem Worlanyo, GTV, Theresa Atogiyire, GBC Radio and Emmanuel Akorli, of Peace FM.

In an address, the Chairman of the PURC, Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, said the formation of corps, was for it to team up with both the Public Affairs Directorate and the Bureau of Consumer Services of the commission to advise consumers on their rights and responsibilities and conduct public education to help customers make informed choices.

It will among other things, also provide responsive, efficient and accountable management of consumer complaints; investigate consumer complaints and resolve service related disputes.

Another task of the corps, he noted, is to provide responsive, efficient and accountable management of consumer complaints and protect their rights as well with regard to quality of services that are provided.

Prof. Frimpong Boateng said the formation of the corps, will help the Commission to improve on its channels of communication with consumers to facilitate the process of making, receiving and responding to consumer complaints and concerns.

"The Press Corps will also assist the PURC as a body to educate the general public on its core function of regulating and overseeing the provision of the highest quality of electricity and water services to consumers and also protect the interests of utility services providers and consumers."

Inaugurating it, the president of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Mr. Ransford Tetteh, described as laudable the efforts of the PURC to come out with such an initiative and urged other organisations to emulate it.

He said water and electricity are key drivers of development and progress in any society and has therefore urged members of the corps to expose the challenges and the possible rot in the sector with the view of improving the services to the public.

The GJA president said he was optimistic that if the members do their work according to the ethics and standards of their chosen profession, issues concerning the sector cannot be swept under the carpet.

Mr. Tetteh told the members, not to speculate issues in their reportage but rather, clarify and verify the issues regarding utility provision and that regulation is very sensitive and must be dealt with care and fact.

He entreated the members to properly put out information that will be given to them by the PURC so that the general public will witness an improvement in water and electricity delivery so that the public would be obliged to pay their bills promptly to develop the sector.

Mr. Tetteh called on the PURC to impress on the Electricity Company of Ghana to provide more electricity metres to the pubic particularly those in the compound houses so that the burden of larger households depending on a single metre would be reduced.