Ashanti Region Rejects PURC Utility Hike, Vows “We Will Not Pay.
A section of residents in the Ashanti Region have rejected the upward review of electricity and water tariffs announced by the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission to take effect from July 1.
The tariffs have been increased by 3.49% for electricity and 0.85% for water, but the residents say they will not comply with the new rates.
They revealed that the services provided are not suitable and do not justify any increment.
According to them, water pipes can be shut for months without supply yet consumers are still expected to pay higher bills.
Many households in the region say they have resorted to buying water from tankers and private vendors, which already strains their budgets.
Adding another increase on top of that, they argue, amounts to paying for a service they do not receive.
They also lamented that prepaid electricity credit runs out quickly, describing it as running “like air,” and questioned the rationale behind increasing light bills when the service is unreliable.
For traders, barbers, cold store operators, and other small businesses that depend heavily on power, the cost of doing business has already climbed due to frequent outages.
The new increment, they say, will only push more of them to the brink.
The residents pointed to the return of dumsor as proof that the power situation has not improved.
Long hours of load shedding have resurfaced across several communities, destroying appliances and disrupting daily life.
They argued that instead of fixing the persistent outages and water shortages, authorities are choosing to increase tariffs, a move they consider unfair and insensitive to ordinary Ghanaians already grappling with high cost of living.
“We will not pay any increment,” they declared, insisting that service delivery must improve before any talk of higher bills.
The residents are now calling on PURC, the Ministry of Energy, and the Ghana Water Company Limited to engage them directly and address the poor service before imposing any new charges.
For them, better service comes first, higher tariffs come late.
Story by Bawah Baidoo.
