A resident of the Playa municipality in Havana publicly denounced the Electric Company for alleged irregularities in billing practices, which he described as an attempt to "institutionalize fraud and theft" against the population.
Jonás Bourne Varona, an affected neighbor, stated through a video that since June he has been receiving altered bills that do not match the actual electricity consumption of his home. For this reason, he assured that he has filed monthly complaints with the state entity, without obtaining effective solutions.
"What is received from the officials are mere justifications," said Bourne, who stated that the company continues to charge inflated amounts, threatening to cut off the electricity service if payment is not made.
The complainant reported that this is not an isolated case. He stated that he has encountered other affected customers at the company's complaints desk. They all face the same situation: high rates without justification and payment demands under pressure.
Bourne also noted that he is an opponent of the Cuban regime and faces constant police harassment. He believes that his activism could impact the authorities' lack of response to his complaints.
“The police harass me all week and I have these two aspects: repression and institutional abuse,” he reported.
In addition to criticizing the manipulation of accounts, the citizen expressed his outrage at the poor service currently provided by the Electric Company, amid a national energy crisis characterized by prolonged blackouts and a lack of investment in the system.
The testimony was shared on his social media by the opposition member Ángel Moya with the aim of "bringing to light" what, according to Bourne, is happening in the Playa municipality and in other areas of the country.
Her complaint adds to a growing social discontent over the deterioration of public services in Cuba and the abuse of power by state institutions.
Inflated bills and scams: A recurring problem in Cuba
Complaints against the Electric Company and its management of the service have multiplied in recent months in Cuba, amid the energy crisis the country is experiencing.
In February 2025, a Cuban identified as @sheyreyes03 reported on TikTok that she was scammed, along with her sister and several neighbors, by the electricity collector in her community.
Despite providing proof of payment, the electric company forced them to pay several bills again to avoid having their service cut off. “We are not to blame for that man scamming us,” the young woman stated, highlighting the lack of accountability from the state institution regarding the fraud.
That same month, another user, a resident of Manicaragua (Villa Clara), shared a receipt on social media showing a charge of 356 pesos and 25 cents, despite the fact that in her area they barely received one hour of electricity every 24 hours due to the frequent blackouts.
The affected individual reported that she only had one refrigerator at home and described the charge as "a real scam". Her case highlighted the contradiction of paying high bills amidst prolonged service interruptions.
The complaints are not new. In 2023, in Contramaestre (Santiago de Cuba), neighbors reported alleged employees of the Electric Union who attempted to remove electric meters under the pretext of sending them to a “laboratory.”
The lack of official identification and the absence of responses from the company raised suspicions of fraud, prompting residents to warn on social media.
These episodes reveal a pattern of irregularities: inflated charges, a lack of transparency in billing, and ineffective management of citizen complaints. This is compounded by the national energy crisis, with daily deficits nearing 2,000 MW reported in early 2025, which have resulted in prolonged outages across the island.
Social media has become the main avenue for reporting these situations, which reveal not only the precariousness of the Cuban electrical system but also the lack of protection for consumers against fraud, abuse, and institutional malpractice.
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