THE HEAP TO END CHARGES

One Saturday evening on the second quarter of 2015, where hustling is unending, the people in this community came out in their numbers to pour out the heap of anger laid in their heart for so long. They felt that the government who sold the electricity sector to the private companies (GENCO and DISCO) has continued to over charge the community by issuing “crazy bill”. These peoples’, whose living condition is terrible, believed that the electricity bill is above the rim for continual payment. For the residents, if nothing is done, these private companies won’t stop issuing out “madness billing”

Beginning from 2013 when this sector was handed over to the private companies to operate, the residents in these densely populated areas have been enormously charge for electricity consumption; paying for what they don’t use. Because these companies that bought this sector represent interest far from turning around the sector, the poor in the community are seen as pool where they fetch water, using exorbitant billing to fill in their drums every month in order to increase their profit index.

For two years, while these companies fetched the community dry, the residents living below human standard felt that these crazy bills have to stop, which prompt reasons for deliberation on how to end it.  Three hours before the meeting commence on the very day it was called, some of the activists who also were resident of the ghetto community, where poverty is like a painting for artist brush went out into the dense areas to sensitize and mobilize the people to attend the meeting.

These activists believed that the strength of the poor is like cell when mold together can make a huge difference in struggle. Their socialist orientation never wears the cap of illusion and hold in chest the logic of the government excuses because of the interest they represent.

They try to enlighten the poor that shaking the planted feet of oppression they have to join the trend of uprooting oppression and end this madness of electricity billing. These activists in their numbers move from street to street, area to area like traveling light in space to sensitize and call out people to duly represent their residence in the meeting for collective deliberations.

As they move together, the mega phone which serves as “town crier” shook the heavenly bodies to loose position with songs of solidarity sang by one of the activist handling it. While moving like force without panic, people in the different streets they had covered came out to get a glue of this event.

A good example of this experience was in one of the street where their living condition was odd and shapeless the activists implanted their feet and registered the information. The jobless and helpless youths, parents and the old paused in whatever location they were and paid attention to the pouring sound from the megaphone in order to get a grab of the whole.

Despite this, the echo from the mega-phone threatens to tear the cloud with solidarity songs. Other of the activists went ahead of the fighting songs to sensitize and discuss with people on the need of why their compound should be represented and also their bail out lay in their hand, not on those threatening it with anti-policies.

An aged woman who sells petty items heard the information faintly from where she was and walked towards one of the activist who was busy discussing with two young boys about the details of the information and the struggle for electricity. The woman who cared around with a question asked, ‘please’, she said. ‘What is all this all about? ‘I have been trying to understand what you people are saying’ she continued. ‘Please, can you explain to me?’

He looked at her with a smile and said. ‘Mummy, this is a struggle center on the exorbitant charges of electricity by the private companies (GENCO and DISCO) that bought the electricity sector. Since November 2013, he continued. ‘When the government sold the sector, the charges have been very high’. In fact, he said. ‘With the way things are going, the companies might intend to increase the light money from the current state it is’. The woman upon hearing it nods her head in shock.

The two boys still in the circle of the discussion before the aged woman came around. The activist continued in the light of saying that the meeting that echo through the mega-phone calls for the attention of the people in the community to come all out as binding broom and force to end the exploitation.

Before leaving them to join the motion of the mega-phone handled by another activist and others talking with people, one of the boys asked a question. ‘Please, where and when is the meeting coming up?’ He looked at them and patiently explains again. The meeting will be coming up this evening in one of the public school situated in the community. It is expected of every compound to have at least three or more representatives to attend the meeting in order to deliberate on the electricity billing and what our people living in abject poverty can do.

Moving out from the circle of these people, he immediately run to join others walks from street to street in the community. The area they tried to cover before the hour of the meeting, were clustered places. In the ghetto, where living condition is terrible, a lot of the streets linking each other are in an unorganized manner. Many of the houses in the street the activists called “socialist” went in the hour of 1.00pm to make general announcement of the meeting, were struggling with the earth not to be swallow.

The roads are in horrible condition. The environment is a museum itself in reality. The outlook of life is moot. There are many ugly things witnessed in this area when the publicity was going on. A very good example is seeing how most of the children roam around the street nude yet were excited. Some were between the ages of 5 to 8 years old. Among this age bracket, one of them ran after an activist chanting solidarity few minute they left that point. The girl said. ‘Brother, my mummy is calling you’.

In between these two streets they have covered, there was a ‘joint’ were youths gathered as rally point every evening to talk about their experiences like sports and life style with the hope of having a better tomorrow. Hearing the echo of No light! No payment! As it does approaches as thunder alongside with some children who were excited singing to the rhythm.

Immediately, they turned to get a grab of the whole hint. Because of the curiosity of these boys whose age fall in the bracket of 17 to 21, one among them jokingly asked whether they were going to serve food for boys to eat. He expressed this in a colloquial language usually used in communication amongst peer group.

From the understanding of how things revolve around the nature of life especially in ghetto environs. One of the youth activists behind others moving with solidarity songs to cover the various streets map out before the meeting, over heard what the boy said. He gently went back which to him will be another opportunity to talk with them briefly about why their compound should be represented.

Approaching them, the youth activist in a calm voice said. ‘You people need to come. You need to know what this is all about. As young men nothing is wrong to begin to get involved on issues which indirectly concern you even when you ‘might’ not be the one paying the bill’. As it is, he said. It is your business; because directly, he continued. ‘You are feeling the inch of this country especially the electricity charges’.

In making this point before one among them interrupted with groan voice sounding displeased over the way they were approached in the discussion while molding the bricks of their imaginary dreams. Immediately, when this was noticed in the face of these young men and because of the sensitization going on to wash off the illusion from the mass, thinking that the electricity sector is still controlled by the government. This to the activist is an additional point to be made to lift the discussion by bringing them closer the sea to see the character of this event.

He unveiled the epitaph before them that the government has no voice in this sector that, the government has no direct control over the sector, because they have turned to the direction of selling the sector to private companies. This is why the electricity monthly charges are drowning us, too higher for families like your mum and dad to pay, he said.

Thus, he emphasized further. It is because of this charges that prompt we activists and radical youth like you you saw when we were singing, coming out to frown against the billing. Like some of us you saw, chanting solidarity songs, he said. Are not different from the same rag you wear in life. 

We are also feeling the same pain as human, just the way some of you were raising questions feeling about everything. He continued. We wear the same shoe, bear the same pain, but differently see things. That is why, he said, we are calling on youths or you all to join this movement by attending today’s meeting to air your opinion on the issue.

This conversation was in a period when the publicity trembles the earth with uninterrupted echo of the mega-phone. The boys having long conversation with the activist, lasting fifteen minutes were able to get a glimpse of the core of the information and what it was all about. Before he left, one of the boys, who was fair in complexion, said, ‘brother’ with baby smile, “we are going to make out time to attend”.

While the activists move from street to street in planetary form, heading towards the rally point of the meeting. Most of the artisans, petty traders who sell in the community show huge concern about the spree information given for the meeting to hold in some minutes later, after exhausting about two to three hours for the publicity.

In the background of the solidarity songs sang, some of the domestic petty traders selling perishable items appraise the effort put together to pass this information about the meeting on electricity meeting, when it has been long the residents in the community continue to pay hugely for what they don’t consume.

Two women selling in a small size shop in the same street where the meeting will hold, interact between them that they will attend the meeting this evening to get a clearer detail about the discussion of madness billing.

Within them, they felt the exorbitant charges are unbearable for them to swallow. For months, one of them said. ‘In my compound (she narrated her experience to the fellow market woman) we pay high electricity bill’. In fact, she continued. ‘The bill for the month of April compare to previous one was above us living in the compound to pay’.  

She angrily told the other woman that NEPA (a name many residents in the ghetto environ know then was in charge of electricity supply but now sold out to bear the name GENCO and DISCO) is cheating them. They, with frown faces, seizing moon smile, she lamented. This billing is frustrating for her. The other woman, who was her colleague, closely selling together with her said. ‘My friend is very unbearable to continue to remain in silence’.

Both were furious and embittered over this “madness”. The other woman also complained about the whole experience in recent time especially the “off”, “on” and “off” approach in where she resides people in their area faces. For her, she said. ‘It is a terrible experience’.

Towards arriving at the meeting point for the meeting with solidarity songs of No light! No payment! People who have gotten the information made earlier by the organized activists and radical youths that went out for the publicity, were already converging to listen and deliberate on how to end this “madness of billing” issued by the private companies.

Some of the activists left behind to organize the convergence of people coming down to the venue for the meeting, gently appeal to the people already present that the meeting will soon commence. In the gathering of where the meeting is to hold. There were different outlook that is going on before the kick-start hour of 5pm announced today.

While the patient of people can’t hold itself any longer because of delay of the meeting, which supposed to start in the exact hour of 5pm. A man between the age bracket of 45 to 50, stood up from where he sat to asked an activist running around to put things in order that, when are we going to commence this meeting? He said. ‘We have waited too longer we don’t have time any more’. I think, he continued, ‘we need to start than waiting’.

An old woman who sat beside a teenage said in tinted voice. ‘People, we need to calm our nerves than expressing impatient’. ‘We don’t need to grumble amongst ourselves’, she said. ‘Moreover, we all are here to listen on what these people have to say’. It is only when we calm our impatient (she directed her tinted voice to the girl next to her) can we be able to get the whole point of what this meeting called us out for deliberation.

The young lady beside her looks at her and said, ‘mummy, it is true’. These people talking for the meeting to commence, she said. ‘They need to hold their swell impatient. I don’t think, she continued, we are all here to waste time. We are here to deliberate about this high tariff unleashed by the people who don’t give us light, but every month bring bill for us to pay’.

Few minutes later when people have settled down the meeting started with a discussion by one of the activist who also was a socialist.