The Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) has distributed free electricity meters to selected government schools in Rivers State and written off some outstanding debts owed by the beneficiaries.
 
The initiative, tagged the School Safety Campaign, also sensitised students on electrical safety and the need to protect power infrastructure from vandalism.
 
Speaking at Government Model Secondary School, GRA, Port Harcourt, PHED Head of Corporate Communications, Mrs Olubukola Ilevbare, said the programme reflected the company’s commitment to supporting its customers and host communities.
 
She said PHED was concerned not only with electricity billing but also with initiatives capable of making a direct difference in the lives of its customers.
 
“As a socially responsible organisation, one of the things we do in PHED is to make sure that we touch the lives of our customers by giving back to them.
 
“We are not only invested in the payment of bills, but also in what we can do to directly impact our local communities. Hence, this exercise, which will also be replicated in the three other states in our franchise;  Bayelsa, Cross River and Akwa Ibom,” she said.

Ilevbare explained that the beneficiary schools were selected based on their needs, adding that PHED, under its Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Ete Pinnick, had cleared some of their outstanding electricity bills to give them a fresh start.
 
At Model Senior Secondary School, GRA, the principal, Tamunoinaba Phillips, thanked PHED for providing the school with a meter and cancelling a debt of more than N1.5 million.
 
“We know how much it costs to buy fuel to power the generators. When the weather is hot, it is difficult for the students to sit comfortably.

“We are grateful. The only thing is for us to get fans for the students to enjoy the light,” Phillips said.
 
He urged the students to protect the meter and report any attempt to vandalise it or other electricity infrastructure.
 
At Government Secondary School, Borokiri, the intervention also brought relief to the school management, with the principal, Comrade Nwala Uzoma, expressing gratitude for the cancellation of an outstanding N500,000 electricity bill he inherited when he assumed office in 2024.
 
“I was highly overwhelmed with joy over the bill of N500,000 that had been on our neck. I came in 2024 and inherited that debt, but today they have come to write it off for us.
 
“As a school, we sincerely appreciate all the good things you have shown us today, and we pray God to keep your company flying. We also promise that as soon as the renovation work is completed, we shall be up and about in the use of the meter,” he said.
 
The beneficiary schools include Bernard Carr Secondary School; Community Comprehensive Secondary School, Rumuokurushi and Rukpokwu; Township Model Primary School 2, Moscow Road; Government Secondary School, Borokiri; and Government Secondary School, Umusoya.
 
Beyond providing the meters and debt relief, the campaign encouraged students to adopt safe electricity practices and help protect power infrastructure from vandalism in their schools and communities.