Power firm records 12 vandalism cases, convictions in N’East

The Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC), covering four Northeast states of  Adamawa, Borno, Taraba and Yobe, has confirmed prosecuting 12 cases of vandalism and the same convictions in the district.

It acknowledged recording 37 cases of vandalism across its franchise areas in the last quarter of 2024.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Abdulrahman Isa, stated: “So far, we have prosecuted 12 of these cases, with the culprits serving jail terms.”

He said the incidents disrupted service delivery and resulted in significant financial losses, and affected YEDC’s ability to meet its obligations.

Isa spoke during a sensitisation engagement at the Fombina Emirate Council in Adamawa State, where he led a team of senior management to engage with stakeholders at the weekend.

Addressing questions on the ongoing power supply challenges, Isa discussed the rising costs associated with generating, transmitting, and distributing electricity.

He stated: “For instance, delivering 1kWh of power to Adamawa costs ₦214, but when the government was subsidising, the highest tariff we collected was only ₦50 to ₦56. However, as of April, the government withdrew the electricity subsidy. Today, in areas where we have good infrastructure and can provide a minimum of 20 hours of service per day – now classified as Band A feeders -tariffs have risen from ₦50-₦56 to over ₦214. Other bands, however, still enjoy subsidies.”

The YEDC boss also addressed the economic challenges impacting the power sector, noting that purchasing power has dropped by over 30 per cent, leaving consumers heavily burdened.

“We are caught in the middle,” he said, adding: “We must meet our obligation to purchase and distribute energy while covering our operational costs, despite facing the same economic pressures as everyone else.”

Isa explained that the recent reduction in power supply was due to YEDC’s inability to collect sufficient revenue from end users to pay generating companies, thus limiting the available supply for distribution to customers.

Walin Adamawa, Alhaji Aminu Abdulkadir Mbamba, who represented the Lamido of Adamawa, Dr Barkindo Aliyu Mustapha, empathised with YEDC, acknowledging the challenging business environment the company operates in, remarking: “I sympathise with you as investors, unfortunately, the government didn’t properly plan the transition from subsidy to non-subsidy. Now they have left captains of the industry and investors to tackle this head-on to reduce losses.”

He advised YEDC to invest in staff training, particularly for marketers, who interact with customers, as many people in the region have had unfavorable experiences with the company’s personnel.