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The Trade Union Congress (TUC) says it is opposed to any increment in utility tariffs to the level proposed by service providers, given that Ghanaian consumers are already over-stretched. In a press statement, the TUC said it appreciates the challenges faced by the utility providers, and the difficulties which have afflicted the provision of electricity and water over the years. The Union equally acknowledged the personal discomfort that consumers have had to endure at the hands of utility providers. However, it said the challenges that face utility provision in the country are real, endemic and structural. The statement says there are management and technical issues that are often packaged for consumers to pay in the form of tariff. Though the Union agreed that a tariff adjustment could potentially be part of the solution, it said experiences over the years has shown that merely raising tariffs, unaccompanied by other measures that address systematic challenges has failed to improve the situation. The TUC said failure to allow the automatic adjustment mechanism to work, as agreed among stakeholders in 2010, is a �political failure� for which consumers should not be liable. The TUC says going forward and given the dire economic situation many Ghanaians face, the ECG should rather aim at cutting losses -- or at best breaking-even.