By Mumini Abdulkareem
Residents of Eastern Reservoir road, a community in Tanke area,
Ilorin, on Saturday lamented a 17-day blackout that has grounded
economic and social activities in the area following the theft of
their transformer cable.
Rising after an emergency meeting, the community said it would reject
the attempt by the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC)
officials in charge of the area to shift its responsibility of
protecting transformer and cables to the residents, adding that they
are tired of the attitude of the officials.
Speaking on behalf of the community, Engr. Owolabi Olumide, said,
โBefore, there was nothing like vandalisation of transformer and
cables until the present management took over. Ordinary people cannot
vandalise transformers and cables because they don’t have the
requisite experience and they normally come in the night when it is
raining to carry out the dastardly act.
โWe are not responsible for the security of their property for them.
We have been thrown into darkness for over 17 days and we have
experienced this same thing before for over three months. The easiest
thing for them is to bring bills, they have shifted responsibility to
protect and maintain their property. Before now, the surge that has
been happening from the transformer has destroyed lots of appliances
worth millions of naira and I had wanted to even sue them before some
elders now intervened.
โWe want Engr Bello Ajisafe who is heading their office at Tanke to be
taken out of Ilorin because he doesn’t know how to manage people.
Imagine him telling us that we can’t even pay his salary. That
statement nearly ignitedย fight in their office on Saturday. He was
just talking to the community anyhowโ he added.
Another resident who simply identified himself as Engr TJ, said the
community is tired of the attitude of IEBDC.ย โThey gave us light for
a day, withhold it the next amounting to 15 days in a month. Out of
that period, we rarely have light for eight days and yet they come
with incessant bills.
โWe demanded for meter but we are yet to get it. A cable was
vandalized and we have been under darkness now for the past 17 days.
Yet they still bring bill for us. We are now appealing to them to do
something on time before people will get annoyed and the issue will
get out of hands because it will get to a stage they won’t be able to
resume in their office at Tanke.
โWe contributed over N600,000 at a time for the cable and now they are
billing us over N350,000 to buy the same cable we bought last year
that was vandalisedโ.
He maintained the security of the transformers rests with IEBDC,
adding that โIf we try and contribute money, they should do everything
to secure the place because if after we contribute money again and the
theft happens again, we will not take itโ he added.
Effort to get Engr Bello Ajisafe was not successful on Sunday and he
refused to answer calls put across to him.
But a top official of IBEDC at Challenge who refused to give his name
in print said they have to first investigate the allegation before
coming out with a position. He said anybody with complaints about
their services should put it in writing to inform the authority at
Challenge office in order to resolve the matter.
