Konrad Mizzi: “People who do not come forward will face tougher penalties.” Photo: Jason BorgHundreds have applied for an amnesty that has been offered to people who stole electricity from Enemalta through a scam involving tampered smart meters.
The government gave those involved six weeks to come forward with information on who supplied them with the meters, pay a fine and their dues back to the corporation, or face tougher penalties and prosecution.
That deadline is up on April 6 and Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi said he is happy with the feedback.
“The turnout has been very good, in the hundreds,” he said in an interview with The Sunday Times of Malta.
He said he would rather wait to announce the exact figures after the deadline is up but suggested there were several hundred, “well over 400... we will be collecting millions of euros in this way, beyond our expectations.
“I would like to emphasise again that the people who do not come forward will face tougher penalties,” Dr Mizzi said. He added that the government was also drafting a law that will raise considerably the fines for future instances of electricity theft.
“This will take place soon. We will make it clear that this will not be tolerated.”
The scam was revealed in February by Dr Mizzi, after an internal probe found that some 1,000 tampered smart meters had been installed, siphoning off millions of euros worth of electricity.
In the weeks following the announcement 11 employers were suspended, of which four were arraigned and two found guilty and sentenced.
Shortly after, the Prime Minister announced the government would be giving consumers (among them 200 companies) an amnesty under a legal notice used by the previous administration that gives Enemalta the faculty of forfeiting prosecution as long as defaulters pay their dues.
But the move drew criticism from the Opposition and other quarters because the people involved in this scam had not only stolen electricity but also paid off public officials to help them.
As a result, the Nationalist Party argued, the beneficiaries should not be let off the hook on the corruption charge.
On this point, Dr Mizzi argued that the government explained its position thoroughly, pointing out that people who came forward with information had been spared prosecution by the Attorney General in return for information.
“Thanks to this scheme and to the fact that so many people came forward, this means more people were prosecuted. And it is expected that there could be more prosecutions. From our end, we do not exclude that there could be more suspensions. People are giving us more information.”
He said the corporation has now carried out an inspection of all installers.
The message is that things need to change at Enemalta
But beyond the criminal responsibility, there is also an administrative responsibility.
The government used the scandal to point the guns at the previous administration but what about the company’s officials?
Here the minister points to widespread changes in Enemalta’s management structure with new executive directors appointed across the board.
“The message is that things need to change at Enemalta.”
He makes the same case in respect of another scandal involving the misplacement of more than 600 files related to cases of electricity theft that go back to the period between 2006 and 2011.
The files were found recently after a tip-off from a whistleblower.
The issue is being probed internally to ascertain administrative responsibility for the decision. Dr Mizzi said the probe will take “months”.
“You need to attribute responsibility. We had a situation where a lot of responsibility was placed on people who were relatively junior in the corporation.
“There was no clear written trail of who gave the order for this to happen. I think that now these things are being uncovered.”
New tariffs start tomorrow
New electricity rates for domestic and residential consumers will start to apply tomorrow.
In the first few weeks of April, some households will receive bills with the old tariffs but from mid-April onwards consumers will get cross-over bills that will have part of the period with the old tariffs and the part (from March 31 onwards) with the new ones.
The new rates will be reduced in line with a pre-electoral pledge which, according to government estimates, will mean consumers paying an average of 25 per cent less on their utility bills. The lowest rate on residential accounts will go down from 16 cents to just below 10.5c, while that on domestic accounts will go down from 21c per unit to 13.7c.
Asked if the paying agency ARMS is ready for the changeover, Dr Mizzi said staff there have been preparing for the last nine months.
“I am confident that we are prepared... moreover, the call centre will be beefed up so we will be able to help people better. There will also obviously be an information campaign explaining this.”