Johor DAP proposes SOP for electricity users seeking compensation

JOHOR BARU: Johor DAP said Energy Commission should come out with a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for electricity users who are seeking compensation for the recent blackout incident.
Johor DAP chief Liew Chin Tong said this when he and several DAP assemblymen visited affected shoplots in Taman Sutera Utama, Skudai on Saturday afternoon. According to Liew, the Energy Commission should act in an arbitrary role and protect the consumers' interests.
The blackout in Johor Baru had begun at 10.45am, on Dec 12 due to a failure of the main substation locates at Bukit Indah. It affected 1.8 million account users in Skudai, Iskandar Putri and some parts of Gelang Patah.
To stabilise the situation, some mobile generators were stationed in the affected areas, shortening the period of time that people were left without power.
The blackout lasted on average of between 40 to 72 hours, depending on the availability of generators.
At least two shopping malls, specifically Paradigm Mall and AEON Mall, were closed on Thursday because of the blackout.
Liew said that Pengkalan Rinting assemblyman Cheo Yee How has posted a special form for affected account users to fill in information on Saturday.
According to Liew, it is very difficult for household electricity users to sue TNB for compensation. As the sole electricity provider in the nation, TNB has the social responsibility to compensate those who suffered losses during the blackouts.
Liew also seeks a meeting with Ministrer of Energy, Green Technology and Water, Datuk Seri Panglima Dr Maximus Johnity Ongkili to find out the causes of the blackout and ways to prevent its reoccurrence in the future.
"It is the most serious blackout in Johor after the national blackout in 1996," he added.