FESTAC residents protest two- month power outage


We now sleep outside our homes, says 72-year-old woman

Senior citizens in FESTAC Town, Lagos joined other aggrieved resi­dents recently to protest a two-month power outage in the area. The resi­dents also lamented the arbitrary increase in their monthly electricity bill, coupled with the failure of the company to provide them with pre-paid metres.

The protesters defied the presence of a police patrol team and an early morning rain and marched to the office of the Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) at 23 Road, S Close, with their complaints, demanding a reversal of the outrageous billing and immedi­ate installation of pre-paid metres believed to be more customer-friendly. They accused the EEDC staff of rolling out estimated bills.

The residents carried several placards with inscriptions like: ‘Enough is Enough’, ‘God hates darkness’, “Pre-paid metre is the solution’, ‘Save our soul in FESTAC’, Don’t kill us with crazy bill’ and others even as they sang songs and barricaded the entrance to the company.

Although the protest was largely peaceful, the residents lamented the N50,000 cost of pre-paid metres imposed on them by the company. The elderly ones reeled out their disappoint­ments with the services of the company, just as the youths threatened fire and brimstone against the company.

Fuming with rage, Alaba Ayodele, a resident in the area, said the company had turned them to cash cows with their outrageous bills, even when the area had been in darkness for the pas t two months. He said several requests made to the company to provide residents with pre-paid metres to checkmate arbitrary billing were deliberately ignored.

A 72-year-old woman, Alhaja Yakubu, said the situation has become intolerable. Accord­ing to her, some flats that got a bill of N4000 in December suddenly had their bills hiked to over N20,000 in January.

“The situation has been so bad. In Decem­ber, people go away from FESTAC for the holidays and we normally enjoy light. But after December, we have not had it easy at all. For weeks, we have been sleeping on the balconies, and our children sleep on the corridors because of the heat. The bills we receive are not what we consumed at all. The old metres are not being read but they kept bringing the bill,” she said .

A member of the Lagos State House ofA s­sembly, Hon Sultan Adeniji- Adele, representing Amuwo-Odofin Constituency 1, who resides in the area, admitted that electricity supply in the area took a deep plunge in the past months .

“We see a lot of outrageous bills given to us . We don’t have electricity, yet they bring outra­geous bills. Most of the people here are parents . They want to relax but the heat is too much” , he said.

He said people in other districts get the pre-paid meters at no cost, and wondered why those in FESTAC should be an exception. He explained that the company demanded N50,000 for the pre-paid metre for each house of flat .

“You find out that people living in a room apartment are given N20, 000 bill. Do they have bakery in the house? Do they have industrial equipment in the house? This is unfair. I think enough is enough,” he said.

The President, Festival Town Residents Association, Shola Fakorede, told Daily Sun that several appeals made to the company to address their grievances were rebuffed.

“If you look round, majority of the people here are senior citizens. At their prime age, they are supposed to be resting. It is ungodly to bring out senior citizens out to protest. It is only in Nigeria that you see this kind of thing. It is very, very sad and appalling”, he said.

Fakorede said they would take the protest further to the Lagos, Marina office of the Eko Electricity Distribution Company until their grievances were addressed. He insisted that pre-paid metres must be installed in the entire FESTAC area, without any charge as obtain­able in Ikeja and other parts of the country.

“People are being ripped off. Senior citizens that are supposed to be enjoying the fruits of their labour are losing their hard earned money in payment for services that were never rendered.

They are using the pensions that do not come regularly to pay bills. Nothing explains why residential homes should be given bills of N30,000, N20,000 and so on,” he lamented.

Another resident, Ijeoma Mozie, recalled in anger how she paid N21,000 for a pre-paid metre in 2007 into a holding account, regretting that till date, nothing was given to her. She also parted with additional N5000 for the installa­tion at the power holding office.

“Last year, I brought the documents to the Senior Marketing Manager here. He opened the system and told me that the pre-paid metre had accumulated a total bill of N65,000. I asked him how the bill came since the com­pany was yet to give me the metre. He said they would stop the bill and asked me to bring additional N40,000. I left him and I have not gone to them since then,” she explained.

While commending the protesters for remaining peaceful, the Commercial Manager of the company in, FESTAC, Mrs. Ogugua Veronica, said the management of the company would address the agitations of the residents.

“We are Nigerians. We are part of you. Your complaints have been noted. I have also communicated our management as soon as I saw you. The Public Relations Officer of the Company has also been informed and he would address all the requests you have made,” she said.F

Who owns the EKO ELECTRICITY DISTRIBUTION COMPANY? Federal govt or Tinubu ojuyobo......

no be where agbaje dey go beg for vote be that, make them ask him wetin jonny walker do with over 20 billion dollar electricity funds.

They need a new government who can provide them 24hours of electricity,we need change,we want Buhari/osinbajo.#APC

carsprayer:
Who owns the EKO ELECTRICITY DISTRIBUTION COMPANY? Federal govt or Tinubu ojuyobo......

deceive una sef well well.

I have fulfilled my promised in power sector - GEJ 2015 (what a drunkard).

Hmmm this is the biggest fattest and forking lie of the century...before you quote me I stay in festac 5th avenue f1 close and am happily pinging because I just charged my phone with nepa light of course...2 months kor..2000BC nii

iphanyiuma:
Hmmm this is the biggest fattest and forking lie of the century...before you quote me I stay in festac 5th avenue f1 close and am happily pinging because I just charged my phone with nepa light of course...2 months kor..2000BC nii

Dude, which festac is that??

I know, there is barely light in Festac.. 30 mins max daily except on weekend where power might last 2 hours.

No be only you dey live for festac.

tbaba1234:


Dude, which festac is that??

I know, there is barely light in Festac.. 30 mins max daily except on weekend where power might last 2 hours.

No be only you dey live for festac.

...if you say there is barely light no p I nor argue with you...that's true buh for me am enjoying light here and I did not hear anybody protesting cos of 2months blackout...that's hyperbolic I swear

iphanyiuma:
...if you say there is barely light no p I nor argue with you...that's true buh for me am enjoying light here and I did not hear anybody protesting cos of 2months blackout...that's hyperbolic I swear

I heard of the protest when it happened.

I do not know what you mean by 'enjoying light'?

The only time there is power in my family house along 4th Avenue is at night for less than 30 mins. This is when people are sleeping. This has been going on for weeks.

I know, it is the same throughout festac..

This maybe a bit harsh,but with all these things,Nigerians shud not deserve any sort of pity if GEJ is allowed to return even if he decides to rig the elections.

imsuboi:


I swear. Even for Port Harcourt e no bad reach like this.

After, these yeye people would be praising Fashola like he's one kin' angel.

APC my foot.

It has nothing to do fashola.. The blame is with the federal government when it comes to power.

The same thing happened here in Owode, Ogbomoso,Oyo state around August/September when they suddenly increased the charges. Some house got 15k-35k for the month of August though they normally charge around 1,900-2,500. There's this popular fish seller around the area that got 150k for the same month while some palm kennel factory got 70k for just a month. We protested it to the extent of taking them to the oba Soun of Ogbomoso but they still force us to pay the bills, though they reduced the bills of those in 35k to 15k and those that got 15k must pay everything. Smh for this country

GEJ is working

GMB 2015

Sorry please what is d lga chairman, counsellor, n governor of this state doing about this??
This is really bad, cos some other states, ei no bad reach like this..
Too bad

horlabiyi:
The same thing happened here in Owode, Ogbomoso,Oyo state around August/September when they suddenly increased the charges. Some house got 15k-35k for the month of August though they normally charge around 1,900-2,500. There's this popular fish seller around the area that got 150k for the same month while some palm kennel factory got 70k for just a month. We protested it to the extent of taking them to the oba Soun of Ogbomoso but they still force us to pay the bills, though they reduced the bills of those in 35k to 15k and those that got 15k must pay everything. Smh for this country

tbaba1234:

It has nothing to do fashola.. The blame is with the federal government when it comes to power.

doctokwus:
This maybe a bit harsh,but with all these things,Nigerians shud not deserve any sort of pity if GEJ is allowed to return even if he decides to rig the elections.

bejay247:
They need a new government who can provide them 24hours of electricity,we need change,we want Buhari/osinbajo.#APC

Moreover, the power sector has been privatised, maybe d residents of that area should go to d office n lay complains.

ellechrystal:
Sorry please what is d lga chairman, counsellor, n governor of this state doing about this??
This is really bad, cos some other states, ei no bad reach like this..
Too bad


Moreover, the power sector has been privatised, maybe d residents of that area should go to d office n lay complains.

imsuboi:

How and why is the blame with the FG?
Last time I checked, the power generation and distribution sector has been privatized..
Or are you one of those APC dummies that have nothing upstairs?

The generation capacity is STILL grossly insufficient. The federal government designs the electricity market and regulates it, the failure belongs to them not any other arm.

Also, transmission remains under Federal government hands, how many new lines have been built.

Stop defending mediocrity.

The fault is from the federal level.

#BabaWhileYouWereGone GEJ commissioned 2 power plant #socalledtransformationagenda -here is the score card.

the past two months. dem dey fu---ck up. but we still dey see light every day....chaii op u can lie.....diaris godu ooooo....

Big chronic lie, moderators no put am for front page, nobody I repeat no goddamn soul protest for lite. D guy is just doing and behaving like lie muhammed! Apc liars!

U

tbaba1234:




The generation capacity is STILL grossly insufficient. The federal government designs the electricity market and regulates it, the failure belongs to them not any other arm.

Also, transmission remains under Federal government hands, how many new lines have been built.

Stop defending mediocrity.

The fault is from the federal level.

No one is defending mediocrity ok, d fault is from our past n leaders.

patmaine:
the past two months. dem dey fu---ck up. but we still dey see light every day....chaii op u can lie.....diaris godu ooooo....

Please point out the lie...

ellechrystal:
U
No one is defending mediocrity ok, d fault is from our past n leaders.

Past and present leader..

That is part of Jonathan achievement much talked about pdp.

imsuboi:


I swear. Even for Port Harcourt e no bad reach like this.

After, these yeye people would be praising Fashola like he's one kin' angel.

APC my foot.

idiot

imsuboi:


I swear. Even for Port Harcourt e no bad reach like this.

After, these yeye people would be praising Fashola like he's one kin' angel.

APC my foot.

ediot

imsuboi:



Don't mess with me o! I'll just take that your useless website offline forever. It would cost me nothing.. Absolutely nothing.

it's offline already dummy!!!

FESTAC residents protest poor power supply, high tariff




Frustrated by the epileptic power supply and high electricity bills supplied to their area by the Eko Electricity Distribution Company in recent times, residents of FESTAC, a government established housing estate in Amuwo-Odofin Local Government Area of Lagos State, took to the streets last week Friday to protest the development.

Gathered as early as 8:30am, the aggrieved residents marched peacefully with placards in hands screaming for justice. The residents, cutting across different age groups and socio-economic backgrounds, made their way to the premises of the EKEDC located on 23 Road, S Close, to explain their frustrations.

Top on the minds of the protesters were the issue of prolonged power outage and high electricity bills, referred to as ‘crazy bills’. Also, the protesters expressed their displeasure with alleged demand for outrageous fees by staff of the company for the installation of pre-paid metres which ordinarily should be free.

Lamenting a N50, 000 fee for pre-paid metres imposed on them by the company, residents who spoke with Saturday PUNCH, slammed the EKEDC staff for forcing estimated bills running into around N20, 000 down their throats without visiting their homes to take metre readings.

A protester, Dr. Alex Edo, told Saturday PUNCH, that residents of the estate have been paying for what they don’t get and so could not continue to allow themselves to be exploited by the staff of the company.

“There is only one solution to this problem. They must install free pre-paid metres or nothing. They charge us terrible amounts for what they don’t supply. This must stop,” he said.

Alhaja Yakubu, 72, who also joined in the protest, told Saturday PUNCH that the EKEDC had deprived them of rest in their old age through constant outage and high bills. According to her, the situation is making life miserable for households and individuals, including children.

She said, “The situation has been so bad. In December, when people go away from FESTAC for holidays, that’s when we enjoy a little bit of power supply. But after that period, we never have it good again.

“For several weeks now we have been sleeping on the balconies, while the children sleep on the corridors because of the heat. The bills we get from the power company are far higher than the supply we get. These people don’t read the old metres but keep bringing crazy bills. We’re tired of this.”

A member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Sultan Adeniji-Adele, representing Amuwo-Odofin Constituency 1, who lives in the area, confirmed that power supply in the area had indeed taken a turn for the worse in recent weeks.

“We see a lot of outrageous bills given to us. We don’t have electricity, yet they bring bills here. This is not fair to the people of this area,” he said.

According to Adeniji-Adele, people in other districts get pre-paid meters free of charge but cannot understand why it is a different situation for residents of FESTAC, one of the oldest and most popular housing units in Nigeria.

He said the company demands N50, 000 for pre-paid metres to be installed in each block of flats.

“You find out that people living in a room apartment are given N20, 000 as monthly bill. Do they have bakery or industrial equipment in their houses? This is unfair. I think enough is enough!” he said.

Ijeoma Mozie, another angry protester, narrated to Saturday PUNCH how in 2007 she paid N21, 000 for pre-paid metre into an account belonging to the power holding company but had not received the item till date.

According to her, an additional N5, 000 as installation fee was collected from her by some staff members of the company.

“Last year, I brought the documents to the Senior Marketing Manager here; he opened the system and told me that the pre-paid metre had accumulated a total bill of N65, 000. I asked him how the bill came about when I was yet to get the metre. All he said was that they would stop the bill and that I should bring additional N40, 000. I left his office frustrated and had not returned there since,” she said.

President, Festival Town Residents Association, Shola Fakorede, told Saturday PUNCH that several appeals made to the EKEDC to address their grievances in the past had not yielded any positive outcome. He revealed that the situation had become critical, hence the need to cry out to the world and relevant authorities to address the issues.

He said, “If you look round, majority of the people here are senior citizens. At the age they are now, they are supposed to be resting. It is unfair to bring out senior citizens out to protest. It is only in Nigeria that you see this kind of thing. It is very, very sad and appalling.

“People are being ripped off. Senior citizens that are supposed to be enjoying the fruit of their labour are losing their hard earned money in payment for services that are not rendered. They are using the pensions that do not come regularly to pay bills. Nothing explains why residential homes should be given bills of N30, 000, N20, 000 and so on. We are going to resist this rip-off by ever means.”

The community leader told Saturday PUNCH that they would not stop agitating until their situation is looked into.

He said the residents would also take their grievances to the head office of the EKEDC in Marina, Lagos.

Fakorede called for the free installation of pre-paid meters in the entire FESTAC area as seen in other parts of the metropolis like Ikeja.

Applauding the protesters for a peaceful demonstration, Commercial Manager, EKEDC, FESTAC, Mrs. Ogugua Veronica, said the management of the company would look into the key issues the residents of the area had raised during the protest.

“We are Nigerians. We are part of you. Your complaints have been noted. I also communicated to our management your grievances soon as I saw you. The Public Relations Officer of the company has also been informed and he would address all the requests you have made,” she said.

Public Relations Officer of the EKEDC, Godwin Idemudia, when contacted by Saturday PUNCH on Friday on the matter, said they were in a town hall meeting at FESTAC with residents at the time.

“There was no protest to our office as you claim. As a matter of fact there is a town hall meeting going now in FESTAC. Mr. Ogunlusi and three other people came to our office to submit a petition on the current power situation as it affects them,” he said.

Fakorede who was at the town hall meeting on Friday, told Saturday PUNCH as at press time that discussion was still ongoing and that an agreement had not been reached between both parties. The town hall meeting is a fall-out of last week’s protest by the residents.

http://www.punchng.com/feature/power-talkback/festac-residents-protest-poor-power-supply-high-tariff/