Residents of Magboro in Ogun state continue to groan under the weight of persistent and erratic electricity supply, with many now resorting to using generators to power their homes and businesses, despite paying high electricity tariffs.
 
Residents who spoke with The Guardian lamented the severe impact of unreliable power supply on their daily lives and economic activities.   
 
According to them, the outages have not only made life unbearable but have also crippled numerous small businesses.
 
Residents expressed frustration over the poor quality of supply, noting that the area barely receives up to 20 hours of electricity in an entire week.  When asked whether they enjoyed up to 20 hours of daily supply as Band A customers, many responded with a resounding “no”.
 
A long-time resident, Feyitimi Adewole, recounted how the lack of stable electricity forced her to shut down a frozen food business.
 
“I tried starting a frozen chicken business when I moved to Magboro, but it was tough staying afloat because of the power situation. I spent close to a million naira to set it up, but lost the capital because the goods kept going bad. I kept injecting fresh funds to keep the business running, but without electricity, it’s just not viable. Eventually, I had no choice but to shut it down,” she lamented.
 
For Adeshina Ojerinde, who runs a business centre, the daily burden of fuelling a generator has become unsustainable.

“Power is the lifeblood of any successful business. We run the generator day and night. It’s taking a serious toll on the business. I spend an average of N3,000 daily on fuel just to stay open.   
 
“That is N15,000 a week, N60,000 a month. It is eating up all the profit, but we can’t shut down. All we can do is keep going and pray that things get better.”
 
Making matters worse, residents revealed they are paying as much as N200 per kilowatt-hour. Many feel short-changed and angry about the recent tariff hike, especially given the poor supply.
 
“It is unfair to pay such a huge amount of money and not get the expected power supply,” one resident fumed.

Another resident, Ibrahim Hamzat, said the rising cost of running generators has drastically increased operating expenses and worsened living conditions.
 
“Previously, we used to spend around N600 a day, but now it’s about N1,000, which comes to N30,000 a month. And that’s not even for 24 hours of power, it’s just for a few hours at night for security. On top of that, there is the cost of maintaining the generator. Generators are supposed to be backups, but they’ve become our main source of power,” he said.
 
Femi Oyewo, a resident and small shop owner, noted how the electricity challenge has affected prices in the area.

“Generally, everything is expensive here, but the cost of fuelling generators has pushed up production costs, and that’s also affecting rents for shops and residential spaces,” he said.
 
The prevailing situation in Magboro highlights the country’s ongoing electricity crisis. Despite claims of power sector reforms, many Nigerians, like those in Magboro, continue to suffer the consequences of unreliable electricity, paying more while receiving far less.