PARLIAMENT yesterday requested a list of the electricians whose licences were revoked after it emerged they weren’t properly qualified, and asked the state who would be picking up the cost for checking the buildings they worked on.
The head of the licensed electricians association called on the public to immediately have their houses checked and seek reimbursement from the state.
From some 2,000 electricians islandwide, 122 licences had proved to be problematic in that they were approved for applicants who failed their exams. Around 40 licences have already been revoked. The remainder have had the scope of their qualifications limited. The problem involves electricians in Nicosia, Paphos and Limassol.
Deputies at the the House Communications Committee yesterday urged the government officials to name the electricians, saying buildings they had worked on needed to be checked. It would also have to be determined who would pay for this, they said.
The head of the Electromechanical Services, Andreas Charalambous, said his department had provided the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) with the names of the dodgy electricians on Wednesday.
Charalambous said efforts were being made to see how the affected consumers would be informed, adding that the department was awaiting the advice of the Legal Services to see how to proceed further.
“The Department of Electromechanical Services will not give the names of the electricians who had their licences revoked as the case is under investigation and it has already reached the Attorney-general, who is expected to give directions on how the case should proceed,” said Charalambous.
The head of the electricians’ association, George Kyriacou, underlined the need for the electricians in question to be named publicly.
“Consumers should check their electrical installations at home at their own cost, until these names have been announced and until we know how the state plans to pay for these checks,” said Kyriacou.
Asked why the electricians didn’t carry out the checks at their expense, Kyriacou reasoned that it was unfair for the vast majority of his association’s members – “who do everything legally” – to be punished for a handful of non-professionals.
“There are disciplinary as well as criminal issues,” said DISY’s Zacharias Zachariou after the meeting. “The Committee must be informed on who will take responsibility for checking the electrical installations of the affected establishments.”
