BY DAUD  OLATUNJI,ABEOKUTA
The power situation in Ogun State is not looking up,as businesses continue to collapse by the day. The few that manage to thrive virtualy feed on generators which increase production costs.
Naturally, it was lamentation galore when Saturday Vanguard sought the opinions of businessmen and women at major markets in Abeokuta, the state capital, following the failure of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN, to restore electricity  in  most areas. That notwithstanding, it was gathered that PHCN continues to issue outrageous monthly bills for services not rendered; while the businesspeople continue to pay for fear of being cut off from the grid.

To Mrs. Olaniyan Damilola who owns  a beauty salon in Abeokuta, “Inadequate power supply is really disturbing our businesses  in the area. Sometimes PHCN restores power at night and other times not at all.”
Abidemi Jibowo , a trader, tells the same story: “Power supply at Asiribo, Alowonle, Adigbe is not in proper condition and affects  sales negatively.  And when PHCN decides to restore power, it will either be too low or too high, eventually damaging our equipment. The government should find a lasting solution to the problem to ensure the smooth running of businesses in the area.”
He added that over the past one year, electricity supply had not been stable, but PHCN was in the habit of issuing outrageous bills  for poor services. “A transformer was given to the area by government since October last year, but it is yet to be installed. If not for the vigilance of members of the community, some parts of the transformer or even everything would have been stolen. They should help the community connect the transformer to the grid to make it useful to residents. If they do that, the people will be proud of them.
Ayinla  Rasak, a professional barber  in  Sapon, lamented that the power situation was crippling his business. “I spend N400 on petrol everyday, but how much do I realise daily? It is killing my business,” he said. Razak was joined by Dapo Kinyemi, a  vulcaniser in Itoku market, who said the situation had constrained most of his colleagues to revert to the ‘Okada’ business which does not demand power.
”The power situation is not okay. I spend about N500 on petrol everyday. Something must be done to solve the problem,” urged Taofeek Akinleye, a fashion designer.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/08/electricity-tarriff-ogun-tales-of-failing-businesses/