Anger after energy union cuts off debtors
LEGAL battles have erupted after the energy workers’ union El-Sen cut off electricity to government departments, municipalities, universities, hotels and businesses because of their unpaid bills.
El-Sen claims that Kıb-Tek is owed a total of around 900 million TL in unpaid electricity bills and that it took the unilateral action to enforce payment.
The Finance and Interior ministries, along with Girne, Güzelyurt and Dipkarpaz municipalities, were among 30 organisations to be left without mains power this week due to action taken by El-Sen members, which was promptly branded “illegal” by electricity authority Kıb-Tek.
The Interior Ministry was forced to use generators after losing power on Monday so that it could continue to provide services.
El- Sen secretary general Ersan Kaşif said: “We have taken action against just two ministries and three municipalities so far but others could soon follow unless they pay up.
“A total of 28 municipalities have debts to Kıb-Tek despite being offered payments by instalment and that is unacceptable.”
Meanwhile, at a press conference convened outside the KıbTek head office last week, a group of trades unions, including ElSen, heard that the Interior Ministry alone owed around two million TL in unpaid electricity bills, although this figure was later disputed by the ministry, saying in a statement that the correct amount was around 1.4 million TL.
Arslan Bıçaklı, head of the Türk-Sen workers’ union, told journalists: “Kıb-Tek issued a circular announcing that it would not provide any more electricity to those who owe it money.
“Under those circumstances, how could – and why should – they not cut the supply of organisations that have debts, in one case of 475 million TL?”
El- Sen chairman Kubilay Özkıraç also addressed the gathering, saying: “We have a list of organisations that requested payment of debts by instalment but which have taken no action on information that was given to them. The electricity supply of those who do not pay for the electricity they use will continue to be cut until debts are paid.
“Some of the ministries and universities completed their debt repayments as soon as their power was cut off and that shows they had the necessary money all along.”
In separate comments to CyprusToday, Mr Özkıraç said: “We seized control of Kıb-Tek and cut power to organisations that failed to pay their electricity bills . . . We called [the Interior Ministry] to discuss the debt but we were ignored, so we pulled the plug on them. We will take legal action against the management of Kıb-Tek if it fails to do its duty and continues to cause financial losses.
“We will investigate additional organisations that have large, unpaid electricity bills and fully intend to go down the same route with them.”
Kıb-Tek chairman Selim Gökbörü, also speaking to this newspaper, denied that control of the energy board had been seized by El-Sen.
“Only we have legal authority to cut off mains electricity, not the union, and we are now taking legal action against it,” he said.
“Businesses and other organisations that owe money to KıbTek are liable to have their electricity cut off after 10 or 15 days following a formal warning but we have extended repayment of arrears due to the current economic crisis.”
On Wednesday, it was reported that Girne Municipality had applied to Girne District Court for an interim injunction to have its electricity restored after alleging that El-Sen workmen who disconnected it did so while claiming that they were carrying out repairs.
“We approached Kıb-Tek four times in an effort to find a way of paying off our electricity debt yet our supply was cut off without any warning and under false pretences, which can be seen on security camera footage,” Girne Mayor Nidai Güngördü said.
“We have made debt repayments on a regular basis since July 2014 and such behaviour towards the municipality, which serves the public, is unacceptable. I would like to stress that that we will exercise our full legal rights according.”
The drastic action taken by El-Sen came after companies, organisations and individuals with large unpaid bills were “named and shamed” in a list published earlier this month.
They included Taşkent Nature Park director Kemal Basat, who launched an online appeal for donations to help pay 143,000TL in electricity bills.
Mr Basat said that the park’s income had been hard hit by a big drop in visitors as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
He later told CyprusToday that he had staved off the threat of having the park’s power supply disconnected after members of the public raised 20,000TL to help pay part of the park’s bills. “We had a meeting with Kıb-Tek officials that resulted in an agreement for repayment,” he said.