Rising agitation against estimated billings, as electricity supply remains poor

Estimated billings like a cancer, is eating deep into our finances, killing our businesses and rendering our communities in gross darkness, many Nigerians have groaned.The people lamented that estimated billing were given, whether consumers have electricity supply or not, and payment default earns disconnection.

The Guardian gathered that electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) have been ripping off most Nigerian electricity consumers by their failure to meter them while sending them ‘crazy bills’ every month even when they did not supply electricity.It was also discovered that these residents, after claiming to have bought transformers, poles, cables and even fuses, were charged with installation and sundry expenses.

The Majority Leader of the House, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, had sponsored a bill to criminalise estimated billing by DisCos in the country but unfortunately, it has not been passed into law.When this newspaper visited some of the areas affected by estimated billing, it was a period of lamentation and groaning for many of the residents and business owners as they expressed their frustrations in the hands of DisCos, saying life has been burdensome.

Speaking with our correspondent, Community Development Area (CDA) Chairman, Bajomo Street, Ahmaddiya Bus stop, Ijaiye, Lagos State, Mr. Umosor Ambrose, expressed worries that estimated billings was the order of the day in a country considered a giant of Africa.He said: “We have been having series of issues regarding electricity in this area since Ikeja Electricity took over. When PHCN was in operation, we were able to manage ourselves and we were doing fine. Since Ikeja electricity came it’s been so bad. It is so unfortunate that we are having a system that does not recognize stakeholders. We are stakeholders here because we bought the entire transformer in this community, including the networking wires, poles, and even fuse.

“When the Ikeja electricity came they had series of meetings with us, in each meetings, they would make a lot of promises but they would never fulfill any, instead the situation of power supply has become worse. In this community presently, we are polarized, humiliated, and enslaved in an axis that we struggled hard to put in place. They said customers are kings but here we are slaves under Ikeja electricity. They determine what is supplied, what the person will purchase and how much the person will pay, is this right in a sane society. We have electricity for only three hours daily with bills as high as N85, 000, for residential. Many businesses have been made crippled in the community”

Also, a resident of the community, Mr. Solomon Ajani, running a medical outfit confirmed that the area had been having constant electricity supply until when a new Undertaken Manager, Mr. Fred Odogbo was transferred to the area.“In December 2018, most households were issued estimated bills of N42, 000.00. This generated a lot of revolt within the community. Several residents approached the Abule-Taylor Undertaken for redress without success. The matter was referred to the C.D.A., which engaged Ikeja Electric in discussion without any success. When January 2019 bill came out it was obvious Ikeja Electric had come for a “kill” as most houses were issued a monthly bill of N75,000.00 and above. Attempts by the CDA to intervene also failed.

On his part, Mr. Olufemi Adewuyi, a business man who deals with manufacturing nylon bags in the community, disclosed that before the new manager was transferred to the area, industries were paying N50, 000 while residential were paying N6,000 to N12, 000 maximum.“We learnt that before he was transferred to our area, he had been receiving awards and accolades from the head quarters, maybe that is why he is treating us this way; to get awards. Since he came, the estimated bills have increased to N250,000 to one million for industries while residents have been getting N72,000 to N85,000.”

A resident whose power supply was disconnected due to lack of payment, Mr. Steven Sada, lamented that his house of five rooms was given N85, 000 per month.“For about five months now, there is no electricity in my house because the bill is too high and my tenants refused to pay. When I discussed the bill with them and that we should divide the money, N15, 000, was allotted to each tenant but they told me that they couldn’t afford it.

“These people rented the room for just N3,000 and you expect them to pay N15, 000 for electricity, how is that possible, how will they afford it? What we want now is prepaid metre.”Also, Mr. Micheal Ehiabor, lamented that residents of the area, were only paying for darkness, as the four hours per day promised was not regular. He added that before now, he used to have about 10 people working for him, but he has laid off eight of them since the business wasn’t moving due to irregularities in electricity supply.

“Electricity in this area has become a scarce commodity. We used to have electricity for nearly 24 hours but for few months ago it has been staggering. They have programmed the transformer to be delivering to us four hours power supply daily but some days we don’t have power supply at all. “The Ikeja electric bill in this community will surely enter the Guinness book of record, this is because I have never seen where a residential house will be paying as high as 85,000 in a month. This is an estimation done with evil intention, how can you estimate all the houses the same rate. Are they using the same facilities and this is a country where the minimum wage is N18,000. When we met the Ikeja electric undertaken manager, he insisted that the community must pay.”

Also, residents of Union Estate, Oke-Afa, Isolo, have lamented zero power supply in the axis, for three months saying many of the businesses in the areas have been crippled. In a related development, there have been series of protest from the Olomilagbala and Bolorunduro communities of Ilesha, Osun State, over high estimation of bills and no power supply.

Speaking with The Guardian, a public relation officer, Mr. Remi Oyeyemi alleged that the Ibadan Electric Distribution Company (IBEDC), have been collecting money for electricity that was never provided. He claimed that the company through its Managing Director, Mr. John Donnachie have refused to make available to the people, prepaid meters so that the people would continued to be swindled.

“They have been doing the so-called ‘estimated billing.’ How could anyone even do that in a society with Law? How do you estimate someone’s use of energy without actual meter reading in this day and age? Is that not fraud legitimized? Or if you like, legalized robbery? How do you, for God’s sake estimate electricity bill among a civilized population like the Ijesha people?

“Not only that, IBEDC in Ijesha land have been selling a prepaid meter that was not supposed to cost more than N40,000 three times the price or even more in some situations. There are reports that the Company have these meters, but IBEDC reportedly is hoarding them and refusing to sell them to the public so that they could continue to do the estimating calculation to cheat the people out of their hard earned money. They have been forcing people to pay for darkness.

“In some cases, IBEDC have asked the people to buy transformers. They have asked the people to buy poles. They have asked the people to buy cables. When the people have complied with all these, they would now charge such community with installation and sundry expenses. Usually, such installations were not done on time and this would result in some of the material bought being stolen. It has been reported severally that some of the stolen materials and or equipment have been traced to the staff of IBEDC who would in turn resell such to the needy community.

He added that the Courts should compel IBEDC to pay restitution and indemnities to the many businesses it has frustrated and fraudulently billed. “The tailors. The mechanics. The food sellers. The barbers. The grinders. The carpenters and furniture makers. All and everyone should institute cases severally and jointly to make the evil company called IBEDC pay.”Meanwhile, members of the Lagos State House of Assembly have lamented the irregularities in the sector, urging the National Assembly to expedite action on passage of Electricity Reform Act 2018.

They urged Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Raji Fashola, to direct Eko and Ikeja Distribution Companies (DisCos) to phase out metering system and provide pre-paid meters to Lagos residents. Speaking, representative of Alimosho 1, Bisi Yussuf, stated that crisis over electricity issue was a daily occurrence in Lagos and that it usually leads to violence between officials of DisCos and consumers.

Rotimi Olowo (Shomolu 1), said the issues started when DisCos took over, adding: “What is generated cannot be transmitted because we don’t have facilities for transmission.”Bisi Yussuf (Alimosho 1) noted that the electricity issue is a daily occurrence in Lagos State, as leads to violence between officials of DISCOs and the consumers. Yussuf said that officials of DISCOs usually remove transformers and that they would not replace them for six months, while they still bring bills for such months. He condemned a situation where consumers buy transformers, which later become those of DISCOs.