Tackling Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company in Service Delivery

Solomon Olali-Igabo writes on this piece on Tackling Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company in Service Delivery

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[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he issue of steady power supply has been a long problem since the beginning of democracy in 1999 to date. The defunct National Electricity Power Authority (NEPA) and Power Holden Company of Nigeria (PHCN) were parastatals under the Federal Ministries of Energy and Power respectively before it was privatized.

The Port-Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHEDC) was privatized on the 1st November, 2013 as a private electric distributor that provides power for a total of 14 million people in four states of Nigeria including Rivers, Bayelsa, Cross-River and Akwa-Ibom. The intention of the privatization was to create electricity accessible to every household and boost the economy of Nigeria.

Successive government has failed to find or proffer lastly solution that has bedeviled the power sector over the years despite Nigeria as the giant of Africa and most populous black Nations in the world, with huge gas resources. This is an irony!

Now that power has been privatized into different companies like the Port-Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHEDC) several pit falls and abnormally are glaring issues that are yet to be tackled especially here in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State Capital.

The issue of outrageous electricity bills, challenges with poor power supply and incompetence amongst staffers are prevalent. The company does not provide electricity regularly yet brings bills to customers is unacceptable.

Be that as it may, excellence, innovation, trust, reliability, competence and quality service ate the hallmark of every reputable organization or business. What is the responsibility of PHEDC in Bayelsa State? Is it the duty of the Consumers to provide transformer and other equipment’s even as the company collects money form service rendered?

Sadly, in Yenagoa most consumers are billed with overestimated tariff without meter while on the other hand, light committee members in some communities are not helping matters who connived with some staff of PHEDC to undermined and shortchanged customers for their selfish interest.

The absence of electricity has caused hardship especially to small business operators and domestic homes who use fuel to run their homes and businesses on daily basis thereby increases prices of goods and services.

It is instructive that PHEDC should put satisfaction as its customer’s demand as priority as well as provide transformer where necessary to any location that has such issue including electric poles and other accessories in order to give quality service to customers.

For instance, NIT Road at Etegwe in Yenagoa is without light for almost five months due to bad transformer issue. The maintenance department and marketing department have been contacted and are aware of the plight of the residents. Is PHEDC shying away from its responsibility? When confronted the company’s flimsy response was the complaint has been reported and the company is on it. The question is how long will it take the company to replace a bad transformer?

Following the blackout over this period, residents mobilized and levied each apartment with N 3000 in order to refurbish the bad transformer so that light can be restored to the area. Until now the electricity company has not deemed it fit to assign a new transformer to replace the old or bad one in question at the NIT Road, Etegwe in Yenagoa. It is regrettable that some individuals hoard transformer at the expense of others is not a cheering development.

Government and the regulatory body including the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), should speedily move to resolve or better still call the Port-Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company to do the needful.

In business, integrity, competence, innovation, quality service and excellence are expected to come on board and PHEDC is not exceptional. This no doubt not only accelerate growth but foster good harmonious relationship between the teeming electricity consumers and Port-Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company and by extension other states of the Federation, since power (light) remains one of the essential basic things of life.

Solomon Olali-Igabo is a Yenagoa-based public affairs analyst and opinion leader wrote this piece title on Tackling Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company in Service Delivery

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