By Rachel Kakraba
The Ghana Water Company Limited is to go after consumers who owe the company close to the tune of about 800 million cedis.
The indebtedness, according to the company, is negatively affecting its operations.
Speaking to GBCGHANAONLINE on the exercise to retrieve all monies owed the company, which commenced last month, Head of Communications at GWCL, Stanley Martey, said the majority of the culprits are domestic consumers.
“As at December 2022, consumer indebtedness to the GWCL amounted to 600 million cedis. But at the end of the first quarter we realized that it had ballooned to 800 million cedis, and this is a cause for worry.”
“We are owing our chemical suppliers. We are owing ECG, and we are owing all other suppliers. It means we need the money to enable them to supply us with what we need so that we can also produce water for the people of Ghana.”
He said the drive to recover all arrears from consumers also has the management of the company on board.
“Every management member now is on the field to join the district to retrieve all arrears owed the company.”
He added, “In fact, all categories of consumers are owing, but the chunk is with domestic consumers in terms of numbers. But in terms of amount then our industrial consumers are owing more. We have more domestic consumers owing but the amount is less than the amount that industrial and other categories are owing.”
Mr. Martey encouraged all water consumers to make payments through all the approved GWCL platforms.
He said consumers who fail to settle their indebtedness risk disconnection.
“Customers should not wait for us to get to their homes; we are encouraging them to use the Ghana Water Company Apps to pay. If you do not do that and we come to your home, we will have you disconnected. Then you may have to pay everything, including reconnection fee, and I don’t think people will wait for us to get to that extent.”
Mr. Martey said the GWCL will stop at nothing until all arrears are retrieved.