Musa Na Allah, Sokoto
Governor Aliyu of Sokoto State has challenged the Kaduna State Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO) on the need to improve its services to electricity customers in the state to be able to collect more payments.
He threw the challenge on Thursday at a stakeholders and Customer Complaints resolution meeting of electricity consumers staged by the National Electricity Regulatory Commission NERC at Sokoto Guest Inn.
The Governor represented by the Commissioner for Energy, Hon. Suleiman Danfulani, further said the state government is spending over N1.5 billion to restore cables, transformers, Poles, and other equipment to restore power to the Eastern part of the state, yet KEDCO remains adamant.
“There’s no way you can collect payment from customers for services not rendered, you want to bring in 40, 000 meters to Sokoto state, why did you install them when half of the state is not connected?
“Consumers in the state are grappling with a persistent problem of irregular power supply and arbitrary disconnection of electricity services
Earlier in his remarks, the representative of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Dr. Babatunde Zubairu, assured electricity customers in Sokoto of steady power supply through improved metering and replacement of obsolete equipment.
He said: “KEDCO is the worst-performing electricity distribution as a result of Vandalism, Meter bypassing, and challenges of insecurity.”
According to him, access to electricity is significant to the development and progress of any community and nation at large, as such there’s a need for stakeholders to join hands to salvage the situation.
In his presentation, a senior manager at NERC Headquarters, Mr Pious Bako said: “This has not only posed a hardship for consumers but has also hindered economic growth and stifled productivity for businesses.
“Recognizing the urgency and importance of this matter, NERC has taken a proactive step by formulating the Customer Protection Regulation, 2023 to regulate the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry.
“This Regulation, which was released on 12 May 2023 applies to and seeks to protect the interests of both electricity distribution companies and their customers.”
