An illegal connection of electricity allegedly perpetrated by the African Automobile Limited (AAL), sole agents for Mitsubishi vehicles in Ghana, has been uncovered by the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG). The illegal connection, said to have been done by the company in 2005, is believed to have cost the ECG huge sums in lost revenue. The company allegedly connected electricity behind a meter at its bonded warehouse to its sales and services point located about 150 metres away. To conceal the connection, officials of the company were said to have dug the ground and buried the electrical conductors through a PVC pipe and then cast concrete on it. Briefing newsmen on the illegal connection in Accra Friday, the Managing Director of the ECG, Mr Cephas Gakpo, declared the intention of the ECG to ensure the prosecution of the culprits to serve as a deterrent to others. He said the ECG disconnected electrical supply to the AAL in 2005 for the nonpayment of tariffs but the company had since connected the power supply illegally. Mr Gakpo told the press that during a search, ECG officials detected the PVC pipe across a drain, which turned out to be the concealed electrical conductors after they had cut the pipe open. He said although officials of the AAL used electricity for welding, spraying and body works on vehicles, they pretended that they did not use electricity. He said the ECG had since been monitoring the operations of the AAL, since the motor firm did not use any generator. So when the ECG officials team went to the company, officials of the motor company did not allow them entry, a situation which compelled the team to call for police assistance. Mr Gakpo said when officials of the AAL found out that the ECG inspection team had exposed the illegal electricity connection, they all went into hiding. "They locked themselves up for three hours. Somebody came out and said he was a consultant and moved away," he said. He said the ECG would re-calculate and charge the AAL for unpaid bills since 2005. Again, Mr Gakpo said, the ECG would prosecute the company "and seek very harsh sentences to serve as a deterrent to others". When the Daily Graphic contacted the solicitor of the AAL, Mr Addo Atual, he declined to comment on the issue, insisting that he reserved the right not to comment on it. When asked further, he said he was not abreast of the full facts of the issue and that he would not say anything about it. The Chairman and Chief Executive of AAL, Mr M.S. Hijazi, told the Daily Graphic that since the case was being handled by the solicitor, he did not want to bypass what the company's solicitor had said and so he would not comment on it. Source: Daily Graphic/Ghana