Reject rate hike proposal

THE EDITOR: The Regulated Industries Commission (RIC) has proposed increasing the cost of electricity for consumers. It recommended increased rates, additional tiers, and a change from bimonthly billing to monthly billing.

It has also slipped in an increase in the customer charge, from $6 every two months to $7.50 every month. For residential consumers, this means an increase from $36 a year to $90 a year – a 150 per cent increase. What is a customer charge anyway? Is it just another fee added to our bills, for no reason except to generate more income for the service provider?

Did the RIC give a reason for the change in billing to monthly? Is this simply to improve T&TEC’s cash flow without any consideration for the adjustments that customers will have to make to their own cash flows?

Added to all the above will be increased value added tax (VAT). VAT will now be calculated on a higher figure (higher cost of consumption plus higher customer charge) and will therefore be higher. Business owners will also pass on their increased costs to customers.

What about T&TEC’s inefficient operations? Is it on an aggressive drive to collect monies owed to it? Is it disconnecting those who do not pay their bills and those who have illegal connections? Or does T&TEC scamper when people in certain areas issue threats? Must we, the law-abiding citizens who band our bellies and pay our bills, pick up the slack for those who blatantly flout the rules?

People in high office in TT are alarmingly out of touch with the reality of life for average citizens and the struggles that we face to feed and clothe our families and educate our children. They sit in comfortable air-conditioned offices spewing edicts that oppress poor, hard-working people who struggle daily to make ends meet.

While people reel from the effects of higher gas prices, food price inflation, watered-down school-feeding programmes, higher cost of books, uniforms, etc, the RIC is proposing that we now pay more for electricity. Property tax will soon follow. We are being bombarded on all sides.

The RIC’s public consultations were a farce and a waste of public resources. The commissioners had already made up their minds about the increases and put on a show that made us think that our views mattered. Its proposal to further burden a bruised and battered population with higher electricity bills is ill-timed, insensitive, uncaring, cold, and callous. We must reject outright the proposed increased electricity costs.

JASODRA RAMPERSAD

via e-mail