Lagos Estate Residents Plan Protest Over 5-Month Blackout Despite Donating N15M Transformer

Frustration Mounts as IKEDC Fails to Restore Power

Residents of Love Estate in Ikorodu-Elepe, Lagos, have announced plans for a peaceful protest at the Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) headquarters on Monday. This comes after enduring a five-month power outage that has plunged their community into darkness since December 2024.

Community in Crisis

The prolonged blackout has severely impacted daily life, with residents reporting increased security risks and significant business losses. Many have been forced to spend heavily on fuel to power generators, adding financial strain to an already difficult situation.

Failed Attempts to Resolve the Issue

The crisis began when the community’s transformer developed a fault and was removed by IKEDC for repairs on January 3. With no resolution in sight, residents pooled resources to purchase a new 500KVA transformer worth over N15 million, which was officially donated to IKEDC.

Despite this generous contribution, the new transformer remains uninstalled and unenergized two months after donation, leaving the community in continued darkness.

Residents Speak Out

Emmanuel Ayanda, a frustrated resident, revealed: “Each household contributed N75,000. We followed all procedures, yet there’s no electricity. Crime has increased, and businesses are collapsing.”

Business owner Ranti Olaniyi shared her struggles: “My turnover has dropped drastically. We’ve done all we can – now we need government intervention.”

Ayo Ikuomola disclosed spending over a million naira on fuel: “Women and children now wander daily searching for water and places to charge phones. It’s unacceptable.”

Community Leaders Take Action

The estate’s Community Development Association Chairman, Segun Oni, confirmed the protest plans: “We’ve written to NERC, contacted government agencies, and donated a transformer. IKEDC hasn’t acted. Enough is enough.”

IKEDC Remains Unresponsive

Attempts to get comments from IKEDC officials proved unsuccessful. Both the Head of Technical Unit and Head of Corporate Communications were unavailable for response.

Appeal for Government Intervention

Residents are now calling on Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to intervene and end their months-long power crisis.

Full credit to the original publisher: The Herald