Civil Groups Stage Electricity Day

A total of one-hundred-and-ninety-one human trafficking cases has been exposed across the country in the first nine months of 2019 according to the Myanmar Anti-Trafficking Police Force.

It said that from January to September 2019, 556 traffickers were charged in connection with the cases and 279 people were victimised. It added that altogether 25 people including seven children were victimised, while 54 traffickers were charged in connection with 15 human trafficking cases in September alone.

Under Myanmar’s 2005 Anti-Trafficking in Persons Law, people who smuggle women and children were sentenced to at least 10 years or up to lifetime sentence or fine.

Also, money or property received through trafficking will be confiscated by the government.

He criticized BEDC for taking customers the company’s franchise states for granted in the discharge of its duty to its customers.

According to him, corruption and crime will not end in any country where there is no electricity.

He also accused the various state governments of not being on the side of the people in their demand for accountability from BEDC.

“They said today is Independence Day, but for us, today is Electricity Democracy Day. Our leaders and governors have abandoned us; they are supposed to be at our stadia today in celebration, but they have left us. The hearts of our leaders are not clear,” he said.

Agho described BEDC as a rejected and dejected company, even as he insisted that there should be no going back to the December 2019 terminal date for the federal government to withdraw​ the license of the firm.

Meanwhile, the management of BEDC has expressed displeasure over the protest which it described as a disturbance of public peace.

The Executive Director (Commercial), of BEDC, Dr. Abu Ejoor, had while addressing journalists at the launch of the Meter Asset Provider (MAP) scheme, said that there was no expiration of BEDC’s license in December as alleged by EDOSCO.

He explained further that “the licenses issued to BEDC and other Discos would expire after 15 years, with a renewal of extension for another 10 years.