₦airaland Forum

Lagos community lament five-month electricity blackout

Some residents of Love Estate in Ikorodu-Elepe Area of Lagos State on Sunday lamented five months of power outage in the community that has grounded businesses.

They appealed to the Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company to restore power to the community after the only electricity transformer was taken away for repairs in January.

The residents said the prolonged absence of electricity has made them vulnerable to attacks from marauders who operate under the cover of darkness, saying it has also grounded their businesses and other activities that rely on electricity.

Some of residents who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria said that despite the donation of a N15 million transformer to IKEDC by the community, pending the return of the faulty one, the company failed to energise it.

A resident, Mr Emmanuel Ayanda, said immediately the estate’s transformer developed a fault and IKEDC was not forthcoming, the community contributed N15 million to purchase a 500 KVA new transformer which was “donated” to IKEDC.

Ayanda explained that despite the donation of the transformer with the necessary official steps taken, the electricity distribution company refused to energise it and also failed to return the faulty one.

He said that residents have been “spending a lot on buying fuel” to power their generators in the last five months, while economic activities have been paralysed.

Another resident, Mrs Ranti Olaniyi, a businesswoman, expressed disappointment over the continued failure of IKEDC to restore electricity in the community for the past five months.

Olaniyi expressed deep concern and distress over the harm caused to her business by the prolonged blackout.

“We have been left in total darkness, and our daily lives have been severely disrupted.

“As a business owner, this prolonged blackout is having a devastating impact on my business operations and income.

“My turnover has dropped drastically, and I am unable to meet customers’ demands or run essential equipment.

“We seek urgent intervention and public attention to this matter. We deserve basic infrastructure and reliable electricity to live and work with dignity”, she said.

Mr Ayo Ikuomola, another resident, said that it had been a tough time for the community in the last five months without electricity.

Ikuomola said that when the transformer serving the estate was faulty in December 2024, officers of Ikeja electric were contacted, and they came to pick it up for repair.

According to him, when IKEDC is not forthcoming on the repair, residents of the community contributed N15 million to purchase a new transformer, and which was donated to the company.

“Despite the fact that the donation was received by IKEDC and necessary approvals were given, neither the old transformer that was taken for repair returned nor the new one energised.

“Since the power outage, and for my business to survive, I have spent over N1 million to buy fuel to power my generator.

“This is frustrating. Every morning, women and children are always roaming the streets looking for where to fetch water and to charge their phones.

“We appeal to the concerned authorities to come to our rescue. This suffering is too much,” he said.

Meanwhile, residents of the community at an emergency meeting on Saturday vowed to stage a peaceful protest at the IKEDC headquarters in Ikeja on Monday.

The Chairman of the Community Development Association, Mr Segun Oni, while addressing the residents, appealed to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission to come to the community’s aid.

Oni explained the community’s faulty transformer that was taken away on Jan. 3, 2025, by IKEDC for repair had not been returned, while the new 500KVA donated by the community had not been energised.

“We have been in darkness for more than five months now, and we cannot continue like this.

“We have written several letters to NERC, other government parastatals and even donated a new transformer to IKEDC without any hope in sight.

“We appeal to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and other concerned authorities to please come to our aid.

“We are staging a peaceful and organised protest to the IKEDC office on Monday.

“We have done our part by donating a transformer to IKEDC but to no avail. Enough is Enough,” he said.

When contacted, Samuel Odukoya, Head of Technical Unit, IKEDC Business Unit, Alogba, Ikorodu, declined comments on the matter

Odukoya, however, directed NAN to the corporate affairs unit of the company in Ikeja.

Efforts to get the reaction of Head of Corporate Communications, IKEDC, Kingsley Okotie, were unsuccessful.

TouchNfollow:
https://punchng.com/lagos-community-lament-five-month-electricity-blackout/#google_vignette

RepoMan007:
Mega projects allover Lag but no power for industries. What a state govt.

RepoMan007:
Mega projects allover Lag but no power for industries. What a state govt.

Lanretoye:
you make your self sound so horrible in an attempt to make sense…silence can be golden sometimes not rushing to comment without having a tangible thing to say,Lagos state government at any point is 50yrras ahead of where ever you come from in Nigeria.

NotProphet:
So how come no light for 5months?
Everything isn't about hate or tribalism.

NotProphet:
So how come no light for 5months?
Everything isn't about hate or tribalism.

Firebox123:
they wan use light spoil us for Egbin ijede ikorodu since this year started

RepoMan007:
Mega projects allover Lag but no power for industries. What a state govt.

Lanretoye:
so when one area have no light for 5months then the whole of Lagos doesn’t have light,do you know how many villages that have not even been electrified in your state?,come and tell us about them and mind your business.obviously it makes sense to you that the issue with one transformer and 15m is not making the should of Lagos to have light.

loffyloffy:
Have you considered the possibility that there maybe major vandalisation or loss of a major electricity infrastructure in the area?

Something that is taking the people in charge some time to fix?

How could you explain the fact that their neighbours have lights, but they don't?

Akanoaaa:
It's more than 5 month, thier transformer spoiled around October or November last year and it was taken away in December or early January. The place is not far from where I stay, I passes the place whenever going to work and coming back and I have a friend staying there too.

NotProphet:
So how come no light for 5months?
Everything isn't about hate or tribalism.

RepoMan007:
Mega projects allover Lag but no power for industries. What a state govt.

Judge hands out prison time in Enron barge scam

Ex-Enron, Merrill execs sentenced. A repentant Boyle gets nearly four years for his involvement in barge scandal

May 13, 2005

Former Enron executive Dan Boyle was sentenced to nearly four years in prison Thursday, while Robert Furst and William Fuhs, both former Merrill Lynch bankers, received more than three years — all for their roles in the Enron Nigerian barge scam.

Boyle, sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison and fined $320,000, was the only one who appeared repentant about pushing through a sham sale of energy-generating barges to the bank so Enron could pump its earnings and bolster its stock price.

"I'm the only one responsible for my actions and omissions and for the pain I caused each and every person I affected," the Clear Lake resident told the judge. "I'm truly sorry."

https://www.chron.com/business/enron/article/Judge-hands-out-prison-time-in-Enron-barge-scam-1942569.php

Kobicove:
So why is he mentioning Lagos State, is it the state government's fault that they have not had electricity for the past 5 months?

Since when did PHCN become a property or business enterprise of Lagos State?

pendy79:
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, on Sunday evening boasted that he could provide uninterrupted power supply to Lagos residents between six and eight months.

Fashola spoke at the commissioning of 8.5 megawatts Lekki Independent Power Project (IPP), the fifth of such power projects in the last five years in the state.

The governor said the addition of the Lekki IPP was a testament to the fact that stable power does not require rocket science to achieve in the country.

While challenging power distribution companies in the state, Fashola said, “Let the Eko DISCOs sign a contract with me, giving part of their concessioning to the state government, in about six to eight months, there will be power in all homes in Lagos State,” Fashola said.

He added, “So, let no one say that he has no money to deliver power for the entire country. This is the limit to which the law allows us to do, but we have done this to make a statement that power can be generated. So, when they come with lies that power is impossible, you can tell them that we have power here; we make it possible”.

The project, courtesy of the state government, in partnership with Heritage Bank, is to serve Lagos State Water Corporations in Lekki Phase 1, Oniru, Victoria Island and Ikoyi, as well as over 25km of public lightening in the Lekki axis.

Commissioning the project, Fashola said he felt fulfilled with the conduct of youths that delivered the project, despite the difficulties in getting to the finishing point.

He said it also showed that the money to improve the Nigerian economy is here, “since we don’t need the World Bank to come and do this for us.”

Also, General Manager, Lagos State Electricity Board, Damilola Ogunbiyi, said the state had shown that reliable and sustainable power projects are possible through the youths.

Ogunbiyi said though it had been a successful story, the state was just scratching the surface in its “aggressive development plan” in the area of power.

http://dailyindependentnig.com/2015/03/can-provide-stable-power-eight-months-fashola-boasts/