BEDC to conduct forensic audit, increases salary by 70 percent

The new Management of Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) has said it will carry out a forensic audit of the company account as part of efforts to clear the rot in the system and reposition the company for service delivery.

The Managing Director, Dr Henry Ajagbawa, who disclosed this in Benin, Edo State capital, said the company’s board has approved salary increment of staff by 70 percent.

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He said his administration which will last for six months but subjects to extension by the federal government will be opened to all with a view of delivering efficient service to BEDC’s franchise states of Edo, Ekiti, Ondo and Delta.

“We are going to conduct forensic audit of BEDC to ascertain the true state of the company just as I encourage PortHacourt DISCO which I headed before to also conduct a forensic audit. There is going to be openness in the running of our operation and we are going to deliver excellent services,” he said.

He said upon assumption of office, the new management found out that that things were not run properly due to lack of consistency in policies, processes and system, adding the new management focus is to have the approved policies approved by the board entrench in the system.

“To make things work, the board approved the salary increase of staff between five to 70 percent graduating at various level of staff. The salary will become operation by end of September.

“Also, staff that exceeded above their targets would be paid 50 percent of their monthly salary as bonus. Our priority is to meter all customers in our franchise states just like I did in PortHacourt when I installed 79,000 meters provided by the federal government. But BEDC is still struggling to install theirs as we still have much outstanding.

“There is another meter financing arrangement where government will provide one million meter and we would pursue that. We want to meter our customers and there are other windows where customer can come and buy meter. And BEDC would refund them through credits months by months.

“We would provide meter through Federal government window and other windows and we are in a hurry to meter our customers”, he said.

On corrupt practices by staff, he said BEDC will open anti-corruption lines that would enable people to report issue of corruption to the management

“We will not shed our staff involved in corruption and we would work closely with security to ensure prosecution of both staff and customers who runs foul against the law and this will deter people from corrupt practices”