Amid epileptic power supply in the Southeast region, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) have vowed to shut down the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company.
IPOB urged the Chairman of the Enugu DisCo, Emeka Offor, and its management to “stop defrauding” the public, claiming that residents had been forced to pay “illegal estimated bills” totaling hundreds of thousands of naira.
According to a statement made on Saturday by IPOB’s Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, IPOB said it is “calling for steady lights in the region by EEDC. If they continue with the abysmal light supply in the South East, IPOB will have no option but to shut down EEDC offices in the South East in the shortest possible time.”
The statement read partly, “Following the abysmal electricity experienced in the South East, we call on EEDC to provide adequate electricity in the area or exit the region for reliable companies to take over.
“EEDC is defrauding her consumers with exorbitant electricity bills without supplying the power. The company has refused to give its consumers prepaid electricity metres but keeps giving illegal estimated bills. In many communities in the Southeast, EEDC gives community bills running in the hundreds of thousands of naira. Whether the light was provided or not, any village that didn’t pay the illegal estimated bills will have the irregular light supply disconnected.
“Communities buy their power transformers and electricity cables. At the same time, they pay the corrupt EEDC company to link power to the community. Afterwards, EEDC will bill the same village for the same power supply.”
The group claimed that the EEDC failed to fix or return some damaged transformers in some localities after they were disassembled, citing concerns that this would impede regional economic and industrial activity.
The statement added, “EEDC dismantled some communities’ faulty transformers for repairs and maintenance but failed to return them for years. Some 10 years and some five years. To date, those transformers have not been restored or seen.
“EEDC’s cup is full, and we are going to show them that people are owners of the region, and they are reaping Ndigbo off with an abysmal power supply and exorbitant bills.
“The abysmal and unavailable power supply from EEDC will frustrate economic activities and industrialization in Biafra Land. EEDC, therefore, must be kicked out.”
The IPOB organisation linked DisCo’s “over N12 billion” debt to the Transmissions Company of Nigeria to the region’s chronic lack of effective electricity distribution.
EEDC’s indebtedness to the Transmissions Company of Nigeria (TCN) of over N12 billion led to TCN restricting EEDC from using some of their facilities in Enugu. As it stands, EEDC is struggling with corporate integrity issues and liquidity to run its operations.
“The pertinent question to ask is, “Does EEDC have the capacity to distribute adequate electricity to the Southeast with her grossly insufficient budget?
“It is obvious that EEDC is fully aware of her limited capacity to deliver steady power, yet they keep going around the Southeast, defrauding and extorting the governors and citizens in the name of power supply. The federal government has deregulated the power sector. Monopoly in the power sector is over,” the statement noted.
