Godwin AJOM, Calabar
The Cross River State Electrification Agency has decried the disconnection of 15 Local Government areas by the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) from the supply of power, warning that if this continues, the company may be sent parking.
Mr Erick Akpo, Acting Director General of the agency said this in Calabar, explaining that from Biase, To Ikom, Yala to Obudu, PHED had refused to supply power despite being under their catchment area.
According to him, “I don’t think there is anybody who doesn’t have issues with power at their homes. Cross River is under served and we are under the catchment areas of the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) and they only supply power up to Akamkpa Local Government area. So, the rest of the state, from Biase to Obudu, now seek power from other sources, which isn’t available because we aren’t under their catchment areas.
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“For example, from Ikom to Yakurr down to Yala depend on the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company and because these part of the state aren’t under their catchment area, they don’t care if power is sent to them or not. So it is a precarious situation; Governor Ayade even attempted removing Obudu and Obanliku from PHED to the Jos Distribution Company but even that is not reliable because of catchment areas. So Cross River is seriously under served”
Corroborating his statement, a power consumer, Mr Bayanu Asuquo, told TNN that “normally, the alternative source (generator) is supposed to be a stand by, but instead what we get now is that the public power supply is now the stand by; the PHED is now the stand by instead of the other way round,
“We are not satisfied, that’s the basic truth; and we are not satisfied with the trend of payment; the Discos feel we aren’t paying, but if the service is given, we will pay. But when you pay for what isn’t consumed or over what’s consumed then, that’s a problem.”
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Our reporter observed that Biase, Abi, Yakurr, Obubra Ikom, Yala , and Ogoja, including Bekwara, Obanliku and Obudu, Etung , Boki etcetera have suffered blackout for a long time w.
Meanwhile, Mr Collins Igwe, PHED director in Cross River assured that the power issues will be sorted out, even as he urged consumers to pay their electricity bills regularly, to enable steady supply.
