Power supply, generator dealers dismiss improvement

…Filling stations in new strategy
…drinking joints’ patronage dropsThe marginal improvement in power supply in the country has come off as a mixed bag. While the impact has been largely positive for the generality of the populace, including households and especially small business operators whose businesses need regular power supply to thrive, the story has not been so positive for some group of Nigerians – petrol stations, black market dealers on petrol, and sellers of power-generating sets.

For the petrol stations, now that businesses and homes get more hours of power supply daily, they no longer enjoy the sales boom from Nigerians who used to buy petrol in jerry-cans to power their generators, both at home and at their business premises, when power supply was chronically epileptic or even non-existent. They have also lost the patronage of black market operators who used to buy in big jerry-cans above the pump price and sell to willing Nigerians at even higher prices. Today, apart from car owners who drive in occasionally to fill their tanks, most filling stations in Lagos have become virtually empty, to the point that it is common these days to see petrol attendants catching a nap while waiting for customers to come.

The same story goes for the petrol black market operators. For this group, their ready market is no longer there, and so the petrol black market has all but disappeared. It is rare to see big jerry-cans of petrol lining the streets these days. The demand, in any case, is no longer there. This situation is worsened by the fact that, apart from petrol price now being stable, the product is also now readily available, and buyers no longer need the middleman role of the black market operators.

For generator sellers, there is a predictable apprehension that with the continued improvement in the power situation in the country, the days of the line of business that has provided livelihood for them and their families over the decades may be numbered. This is as some of them say that the power improvement is already leading to drop in demand for generators by Nigerians.

At the Articles Dealers Market, located opposite the Lagos International Trade Fair Complex, a generator dealer who simply identified himself as Chibuike says there’s no remarkable improvement in power supply as people still buy generators.

What would he do if power supply stabilises and there is no longer market for generators in the country? “That’s what we are praying for. If power stabilises, I too will enjoy it. That means Nigeria has changed for the better. I will change as well and switch to another line of business.”

Generator dealers at Alaba International Market in the Ojo area of Lagos, however, say the so-called improvement in the power situation has not in any way affected their business.

“I haven’t seen much of the improvement you talk about. In any case, our business is still moving. You can see it for yourself. Many big companies, in any case, don’t rely on the national power supply. People are still buying,” said a big-time generator importer at Alaba who does not want his name in print.

“As I speak to you, the demand is still where it used to be. There has not been any significant shift in the demand/supply curve. We are still importing, and we are still supplying. When we achieve power stability in this country, we will know what to do?” he added.

An observer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the so-called improvement depends on where one lives.
According to him, “Some people will tell you they are now enjoying light 24 hours, whereas some others will tell you they are living in perpetual darkness. So, the improvement you are talking about is not holistic; until it is holistic that no matter where you are in any part of the country, you will be able to see and feel the change.”

Drinking joints’ patronage drops

The slight improvement in power supply to many Nigerian homes, which has been blandly attributed mainly to the ‘body-language’ of President Muhammadu Buhari, has impacted beer parlour business as patronage of these places has dropped considerably, BD SUNDAY investigation has shown.

Beer parlour business, also known as drinking joints, is a thriving one with quick returns on investment and this is because of high patronage it enjoys from young business executives and traders who see such places as solace and escape from the ‘darkness’ at home.

Most homes and offices in Nigeria, especially those in the cities, now enjoy 10 to 15 hours of electricity supply and the direct consequence of this is that many beer-parlour customers are withdrawing, preferring instead to spend time with their families in the comfort of their sitting rooms.

“Before now, the earliest I could return home was 11 pm and I would go to bed straight on arrival, but now I get back home sometimes before 8pm and spend time with my family, watch television together and even share the day’s experiences with my wife”, Michael Uzoma who works on Lagos Island but lives in Idimu told this reporter.

Uzoma explained that when they were getting light only once or twice in a week for a maximum of four hours, he would close from work by 5pm but stayed back at a popular joint in Surulere, not necessarily to drink, but to watch television and while away time because it did not make sense to him to go home through terrible traffic situation only to wallow in darkness.

“We don’t get customers again like before”, a bar attendant who simply identified himself as Okon told BD SUNDAY at DT, a popular joint in Isolo area of Lagos, adding however, that he did not know the exact reason for that development.

“During the weekend, many of our customers still come to drink and enjoy themselves, but during the working days of the week, only a few come unlike before. While some tell us that there is no money to spend, others say they now get light and would rather go home to stay with their family,” Okon added.

At Disney Sunshine, one of the drinking joints on Isheri-LASU Road, off Igando Road, a customer at the joint who craved anonymity “for personal reasons” noted that, for sometimes now, many of the people that used to drink there with him were no longer frequent.

“A few of them I have been able to talk to told me they have decided to be going home early as they have reason to return to their families and the reason most of them gave was that power supply has improved in their areas; but don’t forget that a lot of people don’t have disposable income anymore because the economy is no longer what it used to be,” he said.

What is happening in this connection is seen by many as a positive development because it comes with both economic and sociological advantages for families. Apart from saving household income, it also stabilises the home and further strengthens family cohesion.

“I did not know that light was what kept my husband away from home. He was coming home by 11 pm and sometimes by 12 midnight and he would tell you there was traffic on the road,” a groundnut and banana seller on Liasu Road, Egbe-Idimu area of Lagos, said, beaming with smile.

The young woman, who introduced herself simply as Iya Chukwu, disclosed that she was happy about it and her children were also happy. “Our Daddy now comes in early, sits in the parlour and calls in the children to ask them about school which never happened before,” she enthused.

The power situation in Nigeria has been a major cause for concern because it is hard to understand why a country that prides itself as the largest economy in Africa finds it difficult to generate and distribute enough power to industries, offices and homes of its 170 million people.

The situation becomes all the more pathetic considering that where South Africa generates over 40 megawatts of electricity for its less than 60 million people, Nigeria with almost three times that population is struggling to produce five megawatts, which is why many industries are moribund, SMEs hardly break even in their operations and many homes spend their hard earned income on alternative energy sources of power.

Alleged clandestine option to stay afloat

Investigation by BD SUNDAY revealed that some filling stations may have entered into unholy alliance with power generation and distribution companies in some parts of Lagos State, to deny residents of quality supply of electricity.

Informed sources told our correspondents that in some areas in the state where there are clusters of filling stations; darkness is usually the order of the day around such areas.

A resident of Ojuelegba in Surulere, who craved anonymity, said: “I moved apartment to a particular area in Surulere and I discovered that we hardly have light there. Reliable sources told me that it is a deliberate practice by the DISCO in cahoots with the owners of the filling stations around there not to give light at certain critical periods. For instance, we enjoy light from 2am to 7am, then sometimes from 5pm to 7.30pm; whereas in some parts of the state, light is steady for three or more days days, without blinking.”

 

ZEBULON AGOMUO, CHUKA UROKO AND CHUKS OLUIGBO