Why is Tanesco doing this?

WHILE the Ministry of Energy and Minerals complains of the shortage of the operating, some of workers working in Tanzania Electricity Supply Company (TANESCO) are selling the free power given by the company to them as a motivation. According to investigation it is revealed that some officials in the electricity company are misusing the motivation given by distributing such electricity as their source of income. Tanesco workers are given Units 750 per month for Sh.8000 whereas some of the officials are generating their income ranging from Sh. 20,000 to Sh 30,000 to everyone who is connected with such electricity. According to the information released by an official in the company, detailed that it is strictly prohibited for any worker given the free electricity to supply it and in case such worker will be identified he/she will be cancelled from getting the service.He said “company rules and regulation strictly prohibit all workers to sell or distribute such electricity to either his/her tenants at all” A spot survey in some parts of the city like Mwananyamala, there is a Tanesco official who used to sell such electricity to his workers for a long time. Our source who preferred to be anonymity said that if you are looking for electricity from such an official it depends on how many units you want but the minimum price is Sh. 30,000. Furthermore, he added “we are used to this situation and if you have little money you will end up purchasing few units, and if you will emphasize on the receipt you might be in trouble of not getting electricity at all or being told to go and purchase in another place. Meanwhile, the survey discovered also that at Kipungini B kwa Mkolemba street there is an official from Tanesco who is also selling the selling the electricity given by the company. That official is selling such power to about 80 tenants at his commercial complex and residential estates in the Area at Sh 20,000 monthly to each tenant regardless of how much units you consume contrary to the rules and regulations of the firm. One among the tenants who also preferred anonymity said, the land lord is one of the TANESCO high office bearers but they were yet to establish whether he was offered the utility as office incentive all they know is their responsibility of paying electricity bills to the boss. “Myself I don’t know whether TANESCO workers are given free power at all, but we are paying the bill every month and it is Sh. 20,000 per month.  Tanesco staffs are estimated at a hefty bureaucracy of 5,000 and they are purchasing power at a nominal Sh.6.90 per unit. At that rate the company could pay Paltry Sh.6, 313.50 for 759 units instead of the commercial rate of Sh 206,901.02 which other consumers are paying. In other language, the firm is losing Sh287, 940.20 in free power every month from each of its 5,000 staff. Apart from other colossal running costs the staff cannot use the free power at their disposal a huge waste which would have gone to serve other public servants.