Last week, there was a situation that our Minister of Energy, Glenbert Croes,had to address. This, ofcourse, concerns the sudden announcement WEB made regarding their abrupt price increase.
According to the minister, the government declined the company’s decision and the utility company therefore decided to postpone their increase.
It should be kept into account that the cost of living, as the state of things currently stands, has become increasingly expensive. Which I am sure you have all realized when entering a supermarket or going to fill your car with gas. According to the minister, you cannot blame the government for the high gas prices.
Water and electricity are basic necessities. While it is understood that WEB and Elmar have been asked to absorb the cost increase during the first 7 months of a successful hedging last year. This price increase is something they have been talking about since the end of last year.
The minister mentioned that, currently, 7 month later, WEB and Elmar are in an incredibly difficult situation and they cannot continue to absorb the costs. The question is, however, if the prices have to increase, how will they do so? How are they going to make sure that the broadest shoulders carry the most weight, and vice versa.
In the 90’s, it was minister Glenbert Croes himself who was in charge of the utilities and he is the one who came up with the current tariff structure that we still use today. In which it states that if you use little amounts of water and electricity, you will not only pay less, but it is also considered conscientious. If you waste water/electricity, however, you will not only have to pay more, the tariffs will progressively increase.
We understand that increases have to come, but I think we can all agree that they should come in a way that is socially just.
