Today the Belize Electricity Limited, BEL, extended its social assistance to the public to 20 of the country’s senior citizens. Overall, some 160 senior residents countrywide benefit from its Golden Citizen Program. The company’s Customer Care Representative, Hector Villaje, explains how the program works.
Hector Villaje
“BEL’s Golden Citizen program is one of several initiatives through which the company fulfills its new mission, to provide reliable electricity at the lowest sustainable cost, stimulate national development and improve the quality of life in Belize. We are also proud to introduce this program publicly as one that has evolved like many others out of the passion of our employees to reach out in meaningful ways to make a difference for others in the community that we serve. BEL employees who interact with customers on a daily basis have come to see the various circumstances being faced by some of our golden citizens when trying to meet or make payment of their electricity bill. An inspiring incident that occurred in our Customer Care Department in 2011 was the catalyst for this program. In 2011, an eighty three year old woman visited our office to pay her account as her electricity had been disconnected for nonpayment and not having paid her bill for some time. This senior citizen lived alone at her home that isn’t in a good shape and to make matters worse, she had no source of income and had to walk on a daily basis to the Mercy Clinic. At one point she had to sell a part of her land in 2010 to be able to meet her outstanding utility bills. On the day she walked into our office, an employee took it upon herself to not only pay her utility bill but gave her additional monies for bus so she didn’t’ have to walk to the clinic. After recounting the incident to her colleagues, they all agreed to contribute to on a monthly basis, an entire year to pay this customer’s bill and that is how this program came to fruition.”
All beneficiaries of the charitable gesture must be 65 years of age or older whose accounts must be registered as Golden Citizens customers.
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