Chilima pledges to phase out utility connection fee

Vice-President Saulos Chilima has pledged to phase out connection fees on water and electricity if the UTM Party which he leads is voted into power in the May 21 2019 Tripartite Elections.

Chilima, who is president of the new kid on the political block UTM Party after falling out with the governing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), said the connection fees were a burden to Malawians. He said scrapping off the fees would go a long way towards achieving universal access to water and electricity.

The Vice-President said this during political rallies he addressed in Mzimba on Friday and Rumphi on Saturday.

He said it was UTM’s wish to promote universal access to water and electricity when he is voted as President. He said people should only pay for what they consume, adding connection is not a service people should be paying for.

Said Chilima: “It does not make sense that people should fail to have electricity in their homes when the electricity lines are just some metres away from their houses. The connection fee that we charge is preventing people from accessing electricity.

“We promise to phase out the connection fee on both electricity and water so that there is universal access to water and electricity.”

The Vice-President also pledged to review the value added tax (VAT) levied on water, observing that taxing water is as good as killing the nation. He said water is life; hence, people should access it at a reasonable cost.

He said the country should devise better ways of generating income than burdening people with taxes and fees that affect their lives.

Chilima said the country should promote industrialisation, tourism, agriculture, transport and several other sectors that will help it export, but also reduce imports.

In an interview, political commentator Humphreys Mvula supported the idea to phase out connection fees, saying doing so will benefit both service providers and customers.

He said by removing the fees, the companies will attract more customers and make more money from the bills while at the same time enabling more people to have access.

Said Mvula: “That is one of the reform measures that should be taken. It is doable. It is not just about buying votes.”

Chilima chaired the Public Sector Reforms Commission that recommended several reforms aimed at improving service delivery in the public sector.