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WAPA Needs an Overhaul

Dear Source:
I don't have a lot of sympathy for WAPA when I see total inefficiency on a daily basis. Mr. Hodge has great credentials but appears to be afraid to rock the boat and make the serious changes that are necessary.
When brush on the top of my pole caught on fire it took three trips, the last one a total emergency with sparks flying, half my house and the neighbor's house without power before they finally solved the problem. At that point the solution was to have four men on the ground watching while one in the cherry picker did the work. The next week they all returned to take down a completely empty pole that had been standing there for years!
It took three months to get an adjustment on my bill actually deducted. When I go into the office I see clerks taking private calls, eating breakfast and having private chats while people stand on line in the hot sun.
The whole system is inefficient – why do you have to go to the office for every little thing like phones and computers have not yet been invented.
After the audit of services several years ago I've seen no appreciable improvements that would stop the leaks and theft of services; no one was prosecuted for stealing power over many years.
I do appreciate the technicians who keep those ancient machines running and who worked into the wee hours to install new parts this week. As with most government agencies I'm sure there are many who work hard and really care but the way it has always been done defeats their efforts.
As long as WAPA can continue to raise the rates on the backs of the hard working people of the Virgin Islands they have no incentive to make any changes. Maybe we could put Lynn Millen Madura in charge of WAPA.
Carol Lotz-Felix
St. Thomas

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