Kangang community in Jos-South Local Government Area of Plateau State has protested what they termed unjust disconnection of the electricity supply to their area by the Dadin Kowa Business Unit of Jos Electricity Distribution (JED) PLC.
The protesters, who carried placards with different inscriptions, decried the attitude of the electricity company, saying that they cut off the whole community over the attitude of a few youths who were engaged in a verbal brawl with some of the company’s staff who came to disconnect houses owing electricity bills.
Speaking on behalf of the community, Mr. Morgan Piwuna said the community even recently purchased and donated a 500KVA electric transformer to JED PLC to boost power supply in their area, but that few weeks after the donation, the company still suspended power supply to the community.
Piwuna, who is a lecturer at the University of Jos, said no matter what, the community should not be punished for the sins of a few.
He said, “Nobody or staff of JED PLC was beaten or molested during their operations in our area, apart from verbal brawl with some youths. But they still came and cut us off.
“We wrote series of letters, including a letter of unconditional donation of a transformer to them. They said they have approved the installation of the transformer, and that they were going to install it. But the thing is taking forever.The fallout of that delay, I believe, and other reasons were the reason those youths were unruly to them.”
According to him, “The disconnection has affected all aspects of life, including children’s health in the community”.
One of the protesters, Rev. Fr. Matthew Sukada of the Church of Nativity in Kangang, said he was up-to-date in his bills payment but had been deprived of electricity supply.
Also, Mr. Ibrahim Abdullahi, said he has paid for his prepaid meter and has recharged his card but they have disconnected the whole community without taking this into cognizance.
Another protester, Mrs. Duruoha Ijeoma, said, “We and our children are suffering from cold and other health complications because they can’t use any of the home appliances requiring electricity.
“We can no longer store food ahead of the Christmas celebrations due to power problem”, she lamented.
Reacting to the issues raised, the Acting Head of Corporate Communications of JED PLC, Mrs. Saratu Aliyu Dauda said the brawl between the community and their staff actually led to threat to life, thereby necessitating an indefinite suspension of power supply to the area.
Dauda said the community should be responsible for the actions of the youths and should always call them to order at all times.
She maintained that the suspension of power supply to the area is to enable the community to organize themselves and come to JED for amicable solution and assurances of safety of their staff in the area in subsequent operations.
“It is never the aim of JED to be at loggerhead with any community because they are our customers whom we hoped to always have splendid working relationship with,” the spokesperson stressed.
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