Chinese Actress Ma Ling Doesn’t Know How She Ran Up A S$28K Electricity Bill In A Month; Demands Answer From State-Run Electric Company

“Is this a scam? Are you extorting money from me? What is going on?" she asked. "I didn’t receive my bill in July and I sent a complaint to ask for it. [Your staff] said that they were too busy and didn’t reply. Today, I got the shock of my life! I’m sharing my other bills [for comparison].”

In the screenshots, her bill for July came up to S$28.5K, compared to her previous bills of 503.59 yuan (S$106) and 988.72 yuan (S$208).

“Beijing 12345 (Beijing’s citizen appeal platform) is the only way I can resolve this," Ma Ling fumed.

She also tagged the State Grid in her post, adding: “What kind of amazing stunt is this? It’s too scary! There’s only the two of us living at home so how is it possible to spend over 100K yuan (S$21K) of electricity in a month? We didn’t use air conditioning and the heater, so how is it possible to spend this much? I’ve paid my bills for decades! (…) Don’t forget that you’re the national utility company!”

After about an hour, she posted a screenshot of her updated bill, which showed that she now owes the company 152,468 yuan (S$32.1k).

“Can someone explain this bill to me?” Ma Ling wrote. “Are you trying to scare me to death? I’ve been sitting at home for an hour with the lights, one TV and the WiFi on and my bill shot up by 20K yuan (S$4.2K)! What happened?”

Netizens have suggested that the actress could be a victim of electricity theft. They also pointed out that the usage is “akin to that of an entire neighbourhood” and that the State Grid “should have realised something is amiss when there’s such a huge anomaly”.

At press time, Ma Ling has deleted the post. She also shared this update: “[I’m] quietly waiting for the problem to be resolved. I don’t have any other motives behind it. I hope that everything will turn out well. Thank you everyone for your help!”

Photos: PBE Media