Benefiting from illegal electricity connections

Jimmy is the caretaker of a residence in Mukwenda Zone, Kawempe Division. For about ten years, even before he became a caretaker, the residence he is in charge of had been glorying on the blessing of illegally connected electricity. For all that period, they paid little or no bills to UMEME, since their electricity metre couldn’t indicate the watts of power used. In any case, he said that at various points, it was UMEME which owed them some money instead.
However, their day of reckoning came of age when UMEME officials came calling after someone had tipped them of the illegal connection at the residence.
“UMEME told us someone reported us, and we suspect it is the former caretaker, whom we had asked to repay the money he had swindled from us,” said a forlorn Jimmy. The money amounted to about 2.5 million but he is said to have repaid only Ush300,000.
UMEME officials estimated the illegal connection to have been in existence for at least two years. They backdated the bills to two years and it amounted to Ushs12 million, which they warned that it either be paid forthwith or a legal option would be considered. But, after protracted negotiations, at which they falsely confessed the illegal connection was just a few months old, they settled at Ushs2.5 million fine, after which a reconnection was made.
Many culprits are yet to be caught Jimmy admitted. Within the same area, there are so many residences, homes and even posho mills, which connect power illegally and have never paid a single cent to UMEME. This has and continues to cost UMEME highly as they have to grapple with operational and maintenance costs which are quite high.
Some posho mills with not only illegal connections but also operate without licenses, are situated in banana plantains, hidden within dwellings. They often operate at night like one in Mukwenda Zone in Kawempe Division, in which they mercilessly utilise the stolen electricity.
The operators of such posho mill in Mukwenda zone could at times be seen climbing the electric poles, attached to a transformer, in order to connect power directly albeit illegally. There is case when the transformer was so overloaded that it blast and many residents in the area lost most of the TV sets, computers, loudspeakers, radios, to the power surge during the illegal connection.
Though, such illegal electricity connections are costing UMEME highly, those who are in the habit claim they can’t afford the high charges on electricity. This has nevertheless, often times driven UMEME to increase power costs to exorbitant rates. At times, they are even forced to overcharge most of their loyal customers, as Abiaz attests.
“They just look at your building and set the price for you,” said Abiaz, whose family was once a victim of such exaggerated power costs, despite meeting their past bills religiously.
“Nobody was staying at home during that month but we received a bill of about Ushs1.6million.”
However, he added that when they brought up the case with UMEME officials and when the metre was cross checked, the bill promptly dropped to about Ush70,000 only!
But, Abiaz says, the owner of former residence where he had rented a room, was also surviving on illegal power connection from UMEME. But, the owner could not allow the tenants to use electric coils while cooking or boiling water, to douse any suspicion from UMEME.

By Joshua Masinde