IBEDC Decries N28bn Debt Owed By Ogun Customers  

The Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) has disclosed that customers in the Sango and Ota axis of Ogun state owed the company N28 billion. The Lead Media Relation, IBEDC, Mrs. Busolami Tunwase, stated this during a stakeholders’ meeting in Joju, Ota, Ogun state recently. Tunwase, who represented the Chief Executive Officer of IBEDC, Mr. Kingsley Achife, said the N28 billion electricity debt was owed by residential customers and not industries. “We are appealing to customers to urgently pay their bills for the company to survive and effectively carry out our business operations. The accumulation of debts is hampering the operations of the company because we have requests and obligations to fulfill.Not paying for electricity consumed is energy theft, which is punishable and attracts jail term,” she said. Tunwase said the new electricity bill signed into law by President Bola Tinubu gave room for punishment to anyone caught stealing electricity. She admonished customers to refrain from bypassing, illegally removing, or moving the meter to another location, damaging the meter to avoid paying the bill, illegal connections, among others. Tunwase noted that payments received provided the electricity value chain with the needed revenue to improve service. She advised them to desist from using substandard meters, which are prone to serious dangers to the people. Tunwase added that such erring customers with illegal meters should be reported to the appropriate channel as using illegal meters was an offence. She also warned customers against assaulting its officials in the course of discharging their duties to avoid the wrath of the law. A customer, Mr. Tunde Adeyemi, said there was a need for IBEDC to redouble its efforts to provide stable electricity for residents. Adeyemi lamented that the epileptic power supply in Sango and its environs was affecting the livelihoods of people negatively, adding that IBEDC also needed to address higher electricity bills to prevent shortchanging the public. Adeyemi also appealed to IBEDC to make pre-paid meters available to customers to enhance its operation.

FCTA’s N34bn ground rent debtors will be penalised, says Wike

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, says owners of landed properties owing the FCT Administration (FCTA) ground rents, amounting to N34 billion would be penalised. Wike stated this when members of the House of Representatives Adhoc Committee Investigating Failure of Mass Transportation in Nigeria, visited him in Abuja on Tuesday. He warned allottees owing the FCT Administration ground rents to either pay or have their property revoked and reallocated to those who could pay. “I have calculated the debt of nonpayment of ground rent, which is about N34 billion, and I am going to collect all of those back. I don’t care, all I want is for the rent to be paid,” he said. The minister said that the list of the people owing FCTA ground rent would be published on Thursday, adding that they would be given two weeks to pay. According to him, whoever does not pay, his land will be revoked and be given to whoever will pay so that the necessary services will be rendered. “People want to live in a beautiful city but don’t want to pay their dues which is impossible.” He said that the decision became necessary following a decision to tie projects to Internally Generated Revenue to enable contractors complete abandoned projects. Wike complained about the poor budgetary allocation to the FCT and appealed to the lawmakers to assist in improving its budgetary provisions. The minister also said that he would overhaul the Abuja Urban Mass Transport Company (AUMTCO), expressing displeasure that AUMTCO buses were loaned out without maintenance. Earlier, Chairman of the Ad-hoc Committee, Mr Afam Ogene said that his committee visited the minister to find solutions to epileptic mass transportation in the country and the FCT. Ogene described the development as “worrisome”, saying that over N16 billion had been invested in mass transportation during the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SUR-P) with little services being rendered. He expressed relief with the ongoing transformation of the Abuja Light Rail transport system, and traffic lights across the city. “We are here to encourage you to look into transportation and reorganize it. We will support you to do it and it will also solve problems of one chance in the city,” he pledged.