Iyana Ipaja residents protest, demand affordable electricity, fair metering

Residents of Iyana Ipaja, Lagos, have staged a peaceful protest against the hike in electricity tariffs and inconsistent power supply in the community. The protesters, led by local entrepreneur Oluwatobiloba Morakinyo, gathered at the Akinola/Olaide Junction, wielding placards with several inscriptions and chanting slogans against the unaffordable electricity rates.

“This represents a staggering 233.82 per cent rise from the previous Band C rate of N52 per kWh and Band B rate of N68 per kWh,” Morakinyo lamented. “With the sudden migration to Band A, many residents are forced to pay more for electricity than the minimum wage of N70,000.”

Morakinyo said: “N1,000 used to last me for days, but now it doesn’t even cover 24 hours. What’s the use of having power if it’s too expensive to use?”

A retiree from Mercury Estate, Abiola Ogunnaike, lamented, “We appreciate the improved electricity, but the cost is unbearable. Most of us are retired and living on limited incomes. The government should consider the financial strain this increase puts on families.” Also, a retiree and senior citizen, Olawale Famutimi, highlighted the inadequate infrastructure in their area.

“We’ve been using a borrowed transformer since April, and PHCN disconnected some homes to avoid overloading. We even raised money for a new transformer, but PHCN demanded nearly N3 million for installation.

This is exploitation. There are homes where multiple families share a single metre. They need to metre every house fairly,” he demanded. Undeterred by the lack of immediate response, the protesters marched to the Ikeja Electric office in Alausa, Ikeja, to present their demands.

They called for affordable tariffs, proper metering, and adequate infrastructure, emphasising that they would not relent until these issues are addressed.