Escom official alarmed with corruption levels

A senior official at Escom says he is alarmed with the level of corruption at the state run power utility company after it became clear that officers were deliberately delaying to connect electricity to houses until they received huge sums of money from owners.

This follows a report released by Kalondolondo programme.

Peter Mtundu, distribution manager for Escom said management had known all along that there was corruption at the institution but thought it was at low level.

“Escom will not tolerate corruption. We will read this report carefully and chart the way forward,” said Mtundu.

He said those engaged in corruption would be exposed and appropriate action taken according to the laws.

“We need to move on,” said Mtundu.

Nyasa Times investigations show that some Escom employees demand money amounting from K15,000 to K20,000 for power connections failure to pay the money leads to long delays in the connections.

Government is working hard to halt corruption in government departments including the Road Traffic and Safety Department which was touted the most corrupt according to some surveys.

Other departments hit by corruption, according to the surveys include the Immigration Department and police traffic department among others.