August 09, (THEWILL) – The Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Plc (PHED) has decried the high rate of vandalisation of electrical installations in Cross River State.
The Head of Corporate Communications, PHED, Olubukola Ilevbare, disclosed this at a forum organised by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
The forum themed: “Customer Complaints Resolution Meeting” was aimed at addressing complaints and other issues of electricity consumers within the state.
She noted that most of the transformer issues were caused by vandalism, noting that on several occasions, the PHED had restored transformers vandalised by criminals.
Ilevbare, however, explained that there are cases where the transformers are genuinely faulty, saying it is the responsibility of the PHED to fix them.
Also speaking, the Cross River State Commissioner for Power and Renewable Energy, Eka Williams, lamented the rate of vandalism in the state.
He cited the instance of the line between Calabar through Odukpani to Akamkpa which was restored by the government.
He said over 21km of cables, 200 poles and other installations, which cost the State Government over N200 million to replace, were taken off by electricity vandals.
This, he said, was in addition to 20 transformers within that network which have been vandalised.
He said the heat should not be on the service providers alone but also the consumers and called on them to take ownership of these investments.
On his part, the House of Representatives member representing Akpabuyo, Bakassi and Calabar South Federal Constituency, Hon. Joseph Bassey, decried the level of vandalism, calling it an organised crime.
He urged the residents to be disciplined, saying electricity supply is a collective effort and all stakeholders must work together.
Angela Ajere, a representative of the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the PHED, welcomed the reconciliation meeting and described it as a win-win for both the consumers and the distribution company.
Earlier, the NERC Commissioner, Consumers Affairs, Aisha Mahmud, said the idea behind the meeting was to educate and enlighten consumers about the electricity industry and their rights as a consumer.
She said similar meetings have been held in other parts of the country and have been a huge success.
THEWILL Correspondent, Aniekan Bassey has over six years experience that spans across several fields in print journalism including development communication, sexual reproductive and health rights issues, crime, climate change, social justice, business and human interest stories.
