EEDC: Abia residents protest outrageous electricity bills

Residents of Abia State have protested against what they described as outrageous electricity bills by the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), saying the company was contributing to the impoverishment of the people through such bills.

The residents said they would no longer bear the exorbitant electricity bills given to them monthly by the energy providing company, adding that they have been paying through their nose to have electricity which they said in most cases was not regular.

A resident of the Federal Housing Estate, Ogbor Hill, Aba who simply gave his name as Sunny narrated how they have been living at the mercy of EEDC which has been given them unimaginable electricity bills.

Sunny, who claimed he lives in a one-bed-room apartment, said in January, EEDC gave him a bill of N13, 200 and he paid N13, 000 on January 19.

He said on February 8, he got N36, 074.85 as the February bill and as he was planning with others to protest to the EEDC over the outrageous bill, EEDC officials cut the source of his power supply.

Sunny said on enquiry he was told the action was for arrears the people in the area were owing, bills he claimed accrued when the area had no electricity for a period of almost two years, about three years ago.

Sunny like others within the area called on the Federal Government to do everything within its powers to allow the Aba Geometric plant to start operations without further delay to curb the excesses of EEDC.

Equally, hundreds of women from Uzuakoli in Bende Local Government Area of Abia State have staged a peaceful protest at Uzuakoli office of EEDC, over outrageous bills given to them.

The protesting women expressed dissatisfaction with the current hike in the electricity bills and maintained that it is an irreconcilable fact on why people in Uzuakoli will be paying N14,000 and N20,000 while people living in urban areas will pay less.

The women appealed to the relevant authorities including the EEDC Enugu head office to address the injustice and unwarranted alleged exploitation being meted out to them.

They said they are only but peasant farmers and cannot afford the outrageous EEDC bills slammed on them even when they only use electric bulbs for light.

This was even as residents of Umuahia, the Abia state capital, also cried out over the unholy activities of EEDC, lamenting that the electricity company has failed its responsibilities as the citizens are being subjected to total darkness and at the same time outrageous electricity bills.