Edo communities protest eight-month power outage

Abimbola Joseph

Youths from Ososo, Ojah, Ijiranmi and other communities in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area of Edo State have protested an eight-month power outage, saying the prolonged blackout has crippled businesses and hampered development.

The protesters marched to the Edo State Electricity Regulatory Commission and the Ministry of Power in Benin on Thursday, carrying placards demanding urgent intervention.

Speaking for the protesters, Bernard Gomina said residents had endured the blackout for eight months despite efforts by community leaders and the member representing Akoko-Edo II Constituency, Donald Okogbe, to address the problem.

“Our businesses and commercial activities have been badly affected,” Gomina said, calling on the authorities to restore electricity to the affected communities.

Another protester, Abayomi, alleged that residents had repeatedly contributed money to the Benin Electricity Distribution Company for repairs to faulty equipment, but said the problems persisted.

He also complained about what he described as excessive estimated bills imposed on residents before the complete outage and urged the authorities to consider an alternative electricity distributor if BEDC could not provide reliable service.

Okogbe, who joined the protesters, described the prolonged blackout as a source of frustration for residents and called for urgent action.

He said the affected communities spread across the two state constituencies in Akoko-Edo and urged the electricity regulator to consider removing them from BEDC’s coverage if the company could no longer provide dependable supply.

“Power is essential for economic growth and the wellbeing of our people,” Okogbe said, urging the authorities to treat the outage as an emergency.

The Chief Executive Officer of Edo SEBCO commended the protesters for remaining peaceful and said efforts were already underway to restore supply.

He disclosed that the head of the technical team responsible for the area was already on site and assured the protesters that electricity would be restored by Saturday.

The Chairman of the Edo State Electricity Regulatory Commission, Dr Shittu Shaibu, also assured the protesters that the commission was aware of the situation and was working to resolve it.

Similarly, the Commissioner for Power, Paul Osenbo, asked the protesters to submit a detailed memorandum of their complaints.

Osenbo said the ministry was aware of the challenges facing electricity consumers across the state and assured them it would take steps to address the problems.