Lagos Residents Lament Been Charged For Electricity Usage While Their Transformer Is Damaged

The community (Photo credit: Deji Lambo)

Residents Claims Bill Of Eight Month Requested Was Not Consumed By Them

Some residents of Ijaolu community, in the Elepe area of Ikorodu, Lagos State, have cried out over electrical charges which they claim is not been consumed by them.

Report into the story has it that the transformer of the community in September 2016 developed fault and that the help of generators was employed to power houses in the community with the hope of seeing the fault fixed.

They claimed that during the period, no bills were issued by Ikeja Electric, adding that the transformer problem was fixed after eight months.

PUNCH Metro learnt that by April 2017, when power was restored in the community, the rates for the eight months of blackout were included in the bill sent to the residents the following month.

A resident, Agboola Odesanya, said efforts by community members to get the anomaly rectified had proved abortive.

He said “They brought the bills from the first week of May 2017. In the bills, it was clear that they billed us for darkness. We complained at the Oke-Eletu undertaking office of Ikeja Electric; and they told us that they would rectify it, but nothing has been done.

“Why have they refused to rectify a problem affecting their customers? The fact is that they left us helpless when they should have done something; I take that to mean that they are in a subtle way compelling us to pay for what we did not consume.

“It will amount to injustice for any of those affected to pay for those months of darkness. We want pre-paid meters; this thing happened because Ikeja Electric estimates our energy charges. The billings did not reflect our true consumption.”

Shakiru Onabajo, another resident, said the company had promised to rectify the problem without fulfilling the promise.

He said, “The officials at the Oke-Eletu undertaking said it was not their fault and that we should visit their zonal office on Alogba Estate, Ikorodu. When I got there, the officer who attended to me collected my documents, entered it into the computer and told me to go back to Oke-Eletu to meet the marketing manager.

“He said he had called the manager and that she was going to correct it. Since then I have been complaining until I was told that I was not the only one affected and that it was a community issue. Nothing has been done till date.”

A public servant, Olushola Shokoya, said residents were being extorted by the company.

“We have been talking to them about pre-paid meters that will make us to be in control of the power we consume, but I have not seen any prepaid meter. I am on estimated billing and they bring bills as high as N16, 000 which makes me to wonder if I have a cold room in my mini flat. The government should intervene,” Shokoya said.

Another resident, Elom John, said, “I am in pain. I use just three bulbs, a television and a small refrigerator and the lowest amount they charged me is ₦5,000. When I complained, they charged me ₦7,000, and later N10,000.”

The Head of Corporate Communications, Ikeja Electric, Mr Felix Ofulue, said, “My view concerning this is that there are processes; so they should follow the processes to address the issue and these processes are applicable to all our customers. It is not peculiar to them, they should engage their local office so that they can begin the process of reconciliation.

“They should go to the local office and engage them; they can go as a group and it is also best to go as an individual. They should take the bills to them because they have the right to do so. If they cannot solve it, they should go to the business unit. The unit must have an explanation.“