The people of Ode-Aye community in Okitipupa Local Government Area of Ondo State have decried the arbitrary services and estimated charges by Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) after five years of mass disconnection from the national grid.
The community, under the aegis of Bring Back Our Light (BBOL), a pressure group campaigning for the restoration of light in the six councils of the South Senatorial District of the state since 2014, accused BEDC of gross misconduct.
In a statement signed and made available to our correspondent in Akure, the Ondo state capital by the BBOL convener, Olumide Akinrinlola, and the group’s secretary, Dare Omopariola, they lamented the “fraudulent estimated electricity billing system in Ode-Aye community.”
The electricity company had light up the community after several failed attempts on December 25, 2018, enduring five years of mass disconnection of the entire district, but the BBOL convener disclosed that the company “haven’t issued any new bill to electricity users since epileptic power supply was restored to the community.
“They also issued a-10 day ultimatum to the community to appear individually at their Ore office to make the payment and fill enumeration form, failing which, they threatened to disconnect the whole Ode Aye community again.”
BBOL faulted the notice noting that the power restoration on Christmas Day was to some parts of the community and it lasted only for seven days.
“The last electricity bill served on our people was in November, 2014. No new one has been issued till date. For reasons best known to BEDC, they have abandoned the reconciliation of the outstanding electricity debts in order to muddle it up with current one by injecting the pre-privatisation bills into the current one, which has already been cancelled by NERC.”
However, the BEDC Public Relation Officer, Kayode Brown, refuted the allegations levied against the company, revealing that the enumeration notice sent to Ode-Aye was in line with the agreement signed with the community.
He, however, noted that the customers were giving BEDC a bad name so as to blackmail despite all efforts put in place to reconnect the district.
YOMI AYELESO, Akure
