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Meralco agrees to postpone disconnection of unpaid electricity services

Published Jul 2, 2020 10:42 pm

In response to a call by lawmakers, the Manila Electric Co (Meralco) vowed on Thursday, July 2, to reschedule to a later date disconnection of unpaid electricity services to cushion the impact of the COVID 19 pandemic on electricity consumers.

Meralco officials made this pledge during a hearing of the House Committee on Energy presided by Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Velasco on Thursday.

Victor Genuino, Meralco vice president and head of customer retail services and corporate communications said the power distribution company will postpone disconnection operations and will extend the moratorium in issuing disconnection notices to households that have yet to settle the unpaid electricity bills incurred during the three-month quarantine period.

Genuino said the original schedule of the implementation of disconnection threats was set at the end of August.

Together with several members of the House panel, Velasco was able to convince Meralco not to discontinue the electricity services.

 “Can we request Meralco to extend the period guaranteeing that there will be no disconnection to give people more time to recover and get back on their feet as their work resumes and businesses reopen?” he asked Meralco.

Genuino readily agreed to the request during the legislative inquiry into complaints against Meralco regarding alleged sudden rise in electricity bills.

During the hearing, Velasco presented to Meralco the complaints aired by many consumers who have accused the firm of a number of charges that included overcharging, double charging, surge in consumption  notwithstanding cancelled business activities during the quarantine period.

“These complaints bring additional stress to people. Meralco needs to fix its systems and improve its customer service,” Velasco said. 

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