Epe residents lament one-year blackout in Lagos

Residents of Epe Division in Lagos State have lamented what they termed a power outage by the PowerHolding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) in the community for over one year.

Some of the residents who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Epe on Wednesday expressed their dissatisfaction over the situation.

Mr. Demola Olufowobi, a youth leader, lamented the alleged total neglect of the area by the PHCN.

He said that the Epe community had been without power for the last year.

“This is an ugly development in the 21st century; epileptic power supply should have been a thing of the past in our country, not to mention blackouts.

“Both the federal and state governments should wade into the matter and help the ancient community and Nigeria at large find a final solution to this perennial challenge,” he said.

Another resident, Miss Peju Akanji, a businesswoman, bemoaned the damage that the blackout had caused her business.

She said that her business had suffered a serious setback due to the lack of power supply in the community.

“I do sell frozen foods, and the business thrives when there is a constant power supply.

“But since the last year of power failure in the community, I have spent millions of Naira on fuel, which has led to a shortage of profit in my business.

“I doubt if my business can survive these perennial power supply challenges anymore; I am looking for an alternative business,” Akanji said.

Mr. Ibrahim Ladele, Coordinator, National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Epe branch, said that the youth council had written several letters to PHCN to address the power supply challenges but to no avail.

He said that the PHCN officials came to Epe recently to investigate what went wrong, discovered a lot of hiccups, and promised to address them.

“I do hope they stick to their word and address the problem on time; however, we will not relent in calling out on the PHCN officials to provide a lasting solution to the power supply issue in the Epe community,” he said.

A community leader, Mr. Afeez Lawal, described the power situation in the community as hopeless, saying that they had not had electricity in about a year.

Lawal, who attributed the challenge to the deplorable state of the transformers serving the community, called on the Epe Local Government Chairman to assist in rescuing the community from a blackout.

“As a community leader and resident of this great town, I urge authorities to intervene in this matter as a matter of urgency.

“The blackout and neglect by PHCN management have paralyzed business activities in the ancient community,” he said.

Lawal said that visitors, families, and friends would be coming into the town by June for the Sallah festival and urged PHCN officials to restore the power supply for the community to enjoy the festive season.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that efforts to get PHCN officials to react to the allegation proved abortive.