Head of Communications, EEDC, Mr Emeka Eze, gave the advice during the company’s customer enlightenment forum in Umuahia on Thursday.

He said that MAP was a metering programme designed by the Federal Goverment and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to close the existing metering gap.

Eze said that the company had already signed on two meter providers — Mojec International Ltd. and Protogy Global Services Ltd. — to handle the metering project.

“It is the customers that determine the time lag for the metering. If you are not metered, the first step is for you to apply.

“After you apply, a pre-survey will be carried out at your location, a demand note will be presented to you, which you will use to pay at the bank.

“Ten working days after you make payment, you get your meter,” he said.

Eze said that EEDC was not responsible for the metering, but would monitor and inspect the process, stressing that there were companies in charge of that business.

The official said that the company had already done the yearly enlightennent programme in the past few days in most of the cities in the South East, including Onitsha, Aba, Ekwulobia and Awka.

He said that the programme provided EEDC an opportunity to intimate its customers with the new developments in the organisation as well as solicit their continued support.

The forum also provided opportunity for questions and answers between the customers and the company.

One of the customers, Mr Samuel Dike, from Ihimibere in Ikwuano Local Government Area, commended EEDC for the enlightenment programme.

Dike, who said that he was a collector for EEDC in his community, however expressed concern over the increase in tariff.

“We have told them to bring us meter, but they haven’t gotten it for us,”he said.