The Accra East Region of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) is appealing to the general public for assistance in identifying and apprehending suspected thieves who have been vandalizing installed electrical transformers serving communities within the region, especially in the Dodowa areas.
In a period of two months, the region has recorded three 200KVA and one 50KVA vandalized pole-mounted transformers in some communities in the Dodowa district.
The Regional General Manager, Ing. Bismark Otoo, told journalists in Accra on Monday August 26, 2024 that the incidents occurred separately in Agomeda, Kodiabe, Nyanya, and Ayikuma communities of the Dodowa District between July and August 2024.
He explained that unidentified persons usually push down pole-mounted installed electrical transformers and remove vital components from them.
The ECG regional manager pointed said the act usually leads to prolonged outages in affected communities as the company has to find replacements to restore supply to the communities.
"The company is spending huge sums of money to replace those transformers for the communities to ensure continuous supply of electricity. One 200VA transformer costs about GH¢120,000.00, so if we have to keep on replacing vandalized or stolen transformers, imagine the amount of money the company would be losing," he added.
Ing. Otoo mentioned that ECG is making efforts to ensure stable and reliable electricity supply to its customers and appealed to customers and the general public to assist in safeguarding all ECG installations from being stolen or vandalised.
"All electrical equipment we have installed in communities are for the benefit of the community, so we all have to show greater care so that a few miscreants do not deny us of the benefits of these investments," he said.
Ing. Otoo urged customers and the general public to report any suspicious individuals seen around ECG installations to the nearest ECG office or police station, as well as through the ECG Power App where individuals can take pictures of suspicious persons seen around ECG installations.
MA/AE