By Amuda Dan Sulaiman Fab
Lokoja
A joint meeting between the management of Kogi Electricity Distribution Limited (KEDL), AEDC and members of the Lokoja Light Up Movement, a body of electricity consumers turned chaotic on Monday following heated exchanges over the persistent blackout in Lokoja.
The meeting, convened as a follow-up engagement to earlier complaints by residents, reportedly degenerated into a physical confrontation as tempers flared over the prolonged outage on Feeder 3 and the general epileptic electricity supply across the town.
Sources disclosed that members of the movement insisted on the immediate energising of Feeder 3, rejecting what they described as repeated excuses of technical faults by the Abuja Electricity Distribution company also represented at the meeting.
“The new acting M.D of AEDC Mr Desmond responded first by tendering an apology to the people of Lokoja and promised to fixed the problem within a short period.
“Our final submission to them was immediate energizing of the feeder 2 and 3 regardless of any technical faults which has always been their excuse and a 3-day (72 hours) ultimatum was given to AEDC to improve on light situation or else we will take to the streets and shutdown all AEDC facilities across the town.
“We also demanded that the discrimination between the 33kva and 11kva should be stopped immediately and power supply between these categories should be balanced as soon as possible.
“While we wish them all the best, lets also prepare our minds that we can aggressively protest if the improvement is not seen and they should provide a means of reaching out to the poor who have been paying bills every month without enjoying the electricity that they are paying for,” the source said.
Considering the present situation of low power generation in the country and pending improvement from the national grid, stakeholders at the meeting acknowledged the broader challenges within the electricity sector but stressed that equitable distribution of available supply must be prioritised.
It was agreed during deliberations that KEDL and AEDC would ensure that all 11KV feeders receive reasonable hours of electricity supply rather than allowing only the 33KVA feeders to enjoy near 24-hour power at the expense of other areas.
The group then gave three days ultimatum to KEDL and AEDC to demonstrate noticeable improvement in power supply across Lokoja, including the clearing of local faults affecting several neighbourhoods.
In addition, the movement reiterated its earlier concerns over what it described as discriminatory distribution patterns, calling for a balanced and transparent allocation framework to ensure fairness to all categories of consumers.
However, the activists , also confirmed and applauded ongoing efforts by the company to expand and improve the network infrastructure, particularly the erection of new electricity poles along the Zango axis to the Transmission Station, describing it as a positive step toward long-term stability.
Despite the tense atmosphere and brief confrontation, KEDL management reportedly assured stakeholders that technical teams were working round the clock to address the concerns raised and improve supply within the stipulated timeframe.
Leaders of the Lokoja Light Up Movement maintained that they would closely monitor developments and hold the company accountable to its commitments, warning that failure to see tangible improvement within three days could trigger mass protest action in the state capital. (vitalnewsngr.com)
