Many of Y’all Just Don’t Want to Pay GEBE

Dear Editor,

Let’s be honest for a minute.

Did GEBE go through a hack? Yes.

Was the billing system a mess? Yes.

Are there still mistakes to this day? Yes.

Do people still have legitimate questions about high bills? Yes.

Does GEBE work with people on payment plans? Yes.

Does GEBE control the price of fuel? No.

Now here is the part some people do not want to admit: are there many people who simply do not want to pay their bills? Hell yes.

And that is where a big part of this noise is coming from. Nobody is saying GEBE is perfect. Far from it. The company has a lot to answer for and a lot to fix. People have every right to question high bills, confusing statements, missing payments, fuel charges and poor communication. If your bill looks wrong, ask questions. If you do not understand your statement, go in and ask them to explain it. If you paid and the payment is not showing, take your proof and have it checked. I had high bills too. I went in, asked questions and got help.

But what we also have in St. Maarten are people who want to use every issue at GEBE as an excuse not to pay anything at all. Some people have received more than one payment plan and still did not honor it. Some people owe thousands because they simply were not paying. Then they post the bill on Facebook like GEBE suddenly did them something.

Tell the whole story.

If you owe thousands because you have not been paying for months or years, how exactly am I supposed to feel sorry for you? Some people used the hack as a free pass to stop paying altogether. Then when people with real concerns speak up, they jump on the same bandwagon and say, “See, it happened to me too.”

No. It did not happen to you. You happened to you. That is the truth many people do not want to hear.

Your consumption will never be free. Electricity is not free. Water is not free. Fuel is not free. If you use it, somebody has to pay for it. And if you do not pay, that cost does not magically disappear. It falls somewhere else in the system.

Now, if people cannot pay because the cost of living is too high, that is a real issue. But then let us talk about the real things that affect the cost of utilities. Let us talk about what government can do to ease the pressure on families. Let us talk seriously about renewable energy. Let us talk about solar subsidies. Let us talk about reducing dependence on heavy fuel. Let us talk about SOL’s position in the fuel supply chain. Let us talk about long-term solutions that can actually affect what people pay every month. Oh and by the way, none of this can happen over night.

But do not pretend that GEBE is doing you some great wrong when you have not paid a cent and are using the public uproar of the past few years to dodge your own responsibility.

March all you want. But no march is going to bring down the price of oil. In fact, according to international reports oil prices will remain high for the rest of this year at least. What exactly do you expect will happen? GEBE still has employees to pay. Still has maintenance to conduct. Still has loans to pay. Are they supposed to stop collecting from people who willfully rack up bills. Who don't even go into GEBE for help or even respect a payment plan?

Some people care. Some people have real concerns. Some people deserve answers, corrections and proper assistance. But many others are not being honest. Some of y’all just do not want to pay.

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