Military allegedly lash woman, injure six civilians for Ghana sake of dem resist prepaid meters

Clash between military and some residents for Nuaso Old Town inside Lower Manya Krobo of de Eastern Region leave six civilians injured.

De residents clash wit military who dey give protection to Electricity Company of Ghana (EGC) workers to install prepaid meters in de area. 

During de exercise, some residents resist de installation of de prepaid meters resulting to some confrontation. 

“As de military dey escort ECG workers to install meters, one woman resist de new prepaid meters. She threaten to pour hot oil on de military, In de course of de resistance dem discipline am” Citizen Aboagye talk give BBC Pidgin. 

“After dem discipline de woman who threaten to pour hot oil on de military, some of de residents start dey mobilize dey chant songs” he add. 

According to Citizen Aboaye, de military in order to stop de angry youth fire warning shots, injuring some on de process.

’De soldiers lash me wit cane’

One of de female victims explain how de military injure am inside video wey BBC Pidgin secure.

“As dem come, I dey prepare food in de kitchen. Dem talk me say make I enter my room wey I talk dem say I dey cook so I cannot go with them.”

“There noor dem take cane start dey beat me…” she add.

According to her de soldiers talks say “we go come again come beat you pass dis one.”

Another victim, Ebenezer Teye Padi who also sustained injuries to en face and back talk say one of de soldiers hit am on en head with de butt of en rifle while sitting with friends.

Viral video wey dey circulate also show as one person sustain injuries which dey look like gunshot wound to en back.

Electricity Company of Ghana reaction

Assemblyman for the Nuaso Old Town Electoral Area, Samuel Torgbor, condemned de alleged attacks on de residents. 

But ECG blame de residents for de clash wit de military team wey leave some injured. 

Madam Sakyiwaa Mensah, ECG PRO talk say dem “inside Nuaso Old town dem experience resistance… one woman threaten to pour hot oil on ECG and military personnel.”

“Crowd start dey mass up around one ECG team, de military manage collect one cutlass from de residents who dey mass up” she add. 

ECG how we condemn de attacks wey dem call on residents to maintain calm to allow peace to prevail.

What happen before now?

Before now de ECG bin cut de communities off power supply as dem refuse to pay bills for electricity.

To restore power, ECG decide to install prepaid meters.

Over 100,000 residents for Yilo and Manya Krobo municipalities allegedly refuse to accept dis new prepaid  meters wey ECG wan install to replace de postpaid meters. 

But de ECG want de municipality to accept de meters which go make am easy to manage electricity usage.

With prepaid meters residents dey pay before using electricity, just like how people dey buy airtime for phone calls.

But de community wan retain old meters where dem go only pay for electricity at de end of de month, something most residents no dey do leaving ECG wit debt.

In June dis year, ECG PRO Madam Sakyiwah Mensah talk say dem dey work with military to provide technical assistance in de installation of prepaid meters in de Krobo district.

According to Madam Sakyiwah, “customers who go refuse to accept prepaid meters go have dia post paid meters disconnected.”

Some residents also dey allegedly do illegal connections, others dey fail to pay dia electricity bills and when officials of ECG enter de community dem dey allegedly assault dem physically.