8th April, 2014
Some residents of Ojota, Lagos state staged a peaceful protest over what they described as the epileptic power supply in the area.
The protesters moved in droves from one street to another in the area, carrying placards that read: “No light no pay; three weeks in total darkness, we will not pay; all Ojota residents should stop paying NEPA bill,” a placard read.
The protesters urged residents of the area to stop paying electricity bills until there was regular supply of electricity. Festus Okiyi, a protester, said that the poor electricity supply in the area was worrisome. “It is time we take our destiny into our hands. We will no longer tolerate that. If the new buyers of the electricity companies cannot improve the supply of light they should stop collecting money from members of the public,” he lamented.
A barber, who gave his name simply Muyiwa, said that he spent a lot of money on fuelling his generating set. He said that the last fuel scarcity almost grounded his business as he could not buy fuel.
Some of the streets affected by the epileptic power supply includes Roju Avenue, Gbadebo, Olabisi, Ogudu Road, Amao, Ogunletti, Olatunji and Emmanuel.
A similar protest was staged by residents of Ilupeju, where they advised residents not to pay electricity bill until there was improvement in supply.
When contacted, Ikeja Distribution Zone Public Relations Officer, Pekun Adeyanju, blamed the situation on the power generation company, stressing that they had a short fall of supply. “We don’t generate power; we only distribute what we have. Electricity is not something that we store in a place. Unfortunately we are at the receiving end.
“We got 328 megawatt instead of 937 megawatt to satisfy the consumers under our zone. We can’t stop people from protesting, but we call for their understanding.
“We also call for more power generation,” he said.