The Member representing Calabar Municipality State Constituency, Hon. Stanley Nsemo, on Tuesday pressed the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHEDC) for clear, direct explanations on persistent complaints regarding arbitrary billing, unexplained arrears, faulty meters and migration errors during a heated town hall held at the Cross River State House of Assembly NEGROIDHAVEN can report.
The meeting—convened by Nsemo following widespread public outcry—became tense as residents repeatedly demanded straightforward answers from PHEDC officials. At several points, the lawmaker had to intervene to keep the discussion focused.
“Please, let us hear the specific answers to the questions,” Nsemo insisted. “We don’t need them to dance left and right. We invited them here to answer directly.”
Residents had raised multiple grievances, including:
* Debts and arrears appearing on newly installed meters
* Two or more households being forced to share one meter
* Preloaded debts on meters registered under unknown names
* Bills rising from ₦35,000 to ₦106,000 after tariff reclassification
* Unresolved complaints lingering for months
* Cases where abandoned accounts from previous occupants were revived and transferred to new tenants.
Each time PHEDC’s representatives veered into general explanations, Nsemo redirected them, demanding specific clarifications on behalf of his constituents.
“We brought them here so they can answer these exact issues,” he said.
“Let them finish their explanations one by one. We cannot take 100 questions, but the ones raised must be answered properly.”
PHEDC’s Regional Customer Service Manager, Leo Kusi, eventually conceded that some new meters were being installed with old, abandoned account debts, and admitted such cases must be handled “case-by-case.”
“We must establish whether the arrears are genuine,” he said. “If they are not, we have a reconciliation mechanism. But if they are valid debts, they must be paid.”
Nsemo also extracted key commitments from PHEDC region:
* No customer should pay for a meter going forward
* Anyone who already paid must receive the amount back as energy credit
* Complaints of wrongly assigned debts must be investigated individually
* Households sharing meters must be separated once meters arrive
Despite the disorderly atmosphere, the lawmaker maintained composure and urged patience, reminding residents that they had “waited this long for engagement” and should “wait a little longer for the answers that matter.”
The town hall ended with Nsemo promising continued oversight until every unresolved billing and metering issue is addressed.
