From a 78 per cent January 2020 upward review – reportedly heavily subsidised by the government – Nigerians will bear further burden of a 35 per cent hike in electricity tariffs from next month. The increase will lift the current N24 per kilowatt of electricity to N32.
This is a fallout from the sustained campaign by the Distribution Companies (DISCOS), which have pinned expected satisfactory performance of supplying consumers on the increase in tariffs.
Over-the-moon by the vista of hope from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), the DISCOS, going by media reports, have begun “awareness crusade to brace consumers.”
Almost from the onset of their taking over, officials have moaned that about 60 per cent of the energy distributed “failed to match revenue projections.”
They also complained that the “grossly inadequate” $150 million made available for procurement couldn’t mitigate their inability to raise funds from commercial banks “to import enough meters.”
So, they linked abolishing the notorious ploy of estimated billings to their being awash with funds to procure meters – partially available locally, but which the DISCOS have failed to avail themselves or encourage their mass production.
Now that they have their way at the detriment of consumers, who’ve been at the receiving end of the seesaw between the government and DISCOS, Nigerians hope for a turnaround in supply of power and estimated billings – to relive the nostalgia of the Electricity Corporation of Nigeria (ECN) established in 1950.
We grew up in the ’60s hearing about the efficiency of the ECN. Yes, we heard because prior, we hadn’t seen any light produced from the conversion of primary sources of energy, such as coal, natural gas, nuclear, solar, and wind into electrical power.
Later, we heard that supply of power had changed hands – from ECN to the National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) in 1972. Still, many of us were non-practical, as we had only a faint idea about how electricity worked, without experiencing it!
Then, in mid ’70s came the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), with the mandate to electrify rural and unserved communities. And about 1978, electrify reached our village – Idumabi, Irrua, in present-day Esan Central Local Government Area of Edo State.
It’s an unimaginable novelty: With the flip of a switch, light would appear in a bulb, and energy transmitted to power radio and television sets, pressing irons and so on!
Though the power wasn’t of 24-hour supply, its rationing was constant and consistent, and consumers knew when their areas would get supply, and how many hours or days it would last. And the beauty of it: Supply was virtually free, with tokens paid for connection, and monthly tariffs.
But this piece of good news didn’t last, as NEPA, by it’s skewed regulations, compelled the REA to be linked to the national grid, to enable it control, not necessarily its operations, but finances.
That’s how high tariffs, estimated billings and corruption came into the system. Consumers, who couldn’t pay the bills or fail to “grease the palm” of NEPA crew, were indiscriminately disconnected.
NEPA also brought inefficiency into the system, with the authority earning unsavouring appellations to the bargain: “No Electric Power at All,” “Never Expect Power at All” or “Never Expect Power Again.”
The most hilarious part? Whenever power was cut, people would chorus, “Oh, NEPAaaaaa!” And if power was restored, the refrain would be, “Up NEPAaaaaa!”
Such expression of frustration and exhilaration continues till date even as NEPA became Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) – what a metaphor! – and then unbundled into Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Generation Companies (GENCOS) and DISCOS.
What’s change in a name without change in inefficiency, work ethics, blackmail, extortion and short-changing of consumers! It’s a case of “Old wine in a new bottle,” “The leopard cannot change its spots,” and “The hood does not make the Monk.”
The DISCOS – the direct links between electricity supply and consumption, and the ones to hold to account for failure – have put profit before and above service to consumers. They’re hyper-focused on tariff hikes, on the excuse of insufficient funds to upgrade the systems for efficient services.
For instance, the DISCO covering my vicinity in Lagos – Ikeja Electric (abbreviated “ie”) – presents the inefficient operations that run the gamut of DISCOS in the country.
Let’s take a sample of messages of “apology” that the company regularly sends to customers, to explain disruption in services. This is indicative of inefficiency, due to reliance on obsolete equipment, and the staff members – with all their foibles – it inherited from the defunct PHCN/NEPA.
Date: Saturday, 8 February 2020. Time:
11:13“Dear Customer, The current supply interruption is as a result of fault on Igando 33KV Feeder in your vicinity. Our Engineers are currently working to resolve this. Please be assured that supply will be restored as soon as the maintenance is completed. Thank you for allowing us to serve you.”
Date: Sunday, 9 February 2020. Time:
14:06“Dear Customer, Please be informed that the 132KV feeding Ejigbo Transmission Station tripped, making the entire Transmission Station (to be) out of supply. TCN crew are to patrol and restore the line. Please be assured that supply will be restored as soon as the maintenance is completed. Thank you for allowing us to serve you.”
Date: Monday, 10 February 2020. Time:
23:58“Dear Customer, The current supply interruption is as a result of fault on the Distribution Transformer supplying your vicinity. Our Engineers are currently working to resolve this. Please be assured that supply will be restored as soon as the maintenance is completed. Thank you for allowing us to serve you.”
Note the different, but flimsy excuses that the Ikeja Electric gave for the series of supply interruption – some happening on consecutive days, and lasting for days or weeks.
For example, on Saturday, February 8, it had a fault on the Igando 33KV Feeder. The next day, Sunday, February 9, the 132KV feeding Ejigbo Transmission Station tripped, “cutting supply to the entire Transmission Station.” And on Monday, February 10, it resulted from a fault on the Distribution Transformer.
As usual, the company would promise to restore supply soon after its Engineers had completed the “routine” maintenance – a promise often displaced by a subsequent supply disruption – and thank the distrust consumers for “allowing us to serve you.” Imagine!
Meanwhile, in between these disruptions – and lingering darkness – the Ikeja Electric continued to send mostly estimated bills to consumers for services it didn’t render.
Will the new increase in tariffs take Nigerians out of the woods of little or no power at all? That would be a 21st Century miracle!
