The Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) has appealed to stakeholders, customers, and communities within its franchise area to join efforts in combating energy theft and vandalism of power infrastructure.
Speaking at the Agbara Customer Engagement Forum held on Thursday, October 9, 2025, in Lagos, EKEDC’s Acting Managing Director, Mrs. Rekhiat Momoh, stressed the importance of collective responsibility in addressing the growing menace of energy crimes.
Momoh, who was represented by Mrs. Iyiola Ezichi, Head of Customer Experience at EKEDC, noted that energy theft and vandalism hampered electricity distribution and threatened national development.
Stakeholders at the forum represented the Agbara Business Unit, which includes Agbara, Aiyetoro, Aradagun, Badagry, Igborosun, and Oko-Afo zones.
Momoh said the event was designed to foster dialogue with customers, listen to their concerns, and seek collaborative solutions to persistent challenges in power supply and infrastructure maintenance.
She acknowledged complaints from customers, which included delayed meter installations, fallen poles, overloaded transformers, unresponsive fault reporting systems, and perceived over billing.
“We’ve heard the customers and are actively working to resolve these issues through continued infrastructure investment and community engagement,” Momoh said.
She added that EKEDC has committed millions of naira toward power infrastructure upgrades across both rural and urban communities to improve service delivery.
Momoh also urged communities to avoid unsafe practices such as building under power lines and patronising unqualified electricians.
“Customers must be safety conscious – hire certified electricians, avoid walking under high-tension wires during rainfall, and never allow non-EKEDC staff to tamper with connections.”
On the issue of energy theft, she warned that illegal connections and meter bypassing resulted in higher electricity bills for compliant customers.
“We implore residents to expose perpetrators in line with the ‘see something, say something’ principle,” she added.
She also appealed for greater vigilance and community support in protecting installations from cable theft and vandalism.
Reiterating EKEDC’s zero-tolerance policy on energy crimes, Momoh warned that offenders will face full legal consequences.
She noted that the company continued to invest in modern infrastructure to strengthen supply and eventually deliver uninterrupted electricity daily .
Also speaking at the forum, Mr. Madukiei Obiamaka, Head of EKEDC’s Group Extension High-Cost Generating Project, highlighted ongoing investments in power projects across several communities.
He warned customers against employing unauthorised technicians – commonly referred to as “NEPA 2” – due to the dangers and illegality of such practices.
He also emphasised household electrical safety, warning against overloading sockets and using wet hands with appliances.
Community leaders also voiced support for EKEDC’s initiatives, Mr. Festus Eweka, Chairman of the Agbara Consumer Consultative Forum, urged residents to stop vandalising power infrastructure and instead, take ownership of community assets.
Similarly, Mr. Omokaro Emmanuel, Chairman of the Agbara Estate Infrastructure Technical Committee, encouraged EKEDC to enhance outage communication and adopt advanced fault-detection systems.
He praised the forum as an important platform for peaceful resolution of ongoing power issues.
EKEDC reaffirmed its commitment to expanding infrastructure, enhancing safety, and improving electricity distribution through customer-focused policies and continued stakeholder engagement.
Meanwhile, the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) has expressed its commitment to exploring embedded generation and alternative energy partnerships to ensure a more stable power supply, especially for critical business zones.
Managing Director, IBEDC, Mr. Francis Agoha, said this on Thursday in Ibadan during a breakfast meeting with Maximum Demand (MD) customers from the Ibadan region.
Agoha noted that the move would help reduce dependence on the national grid and enhance reliability for industrial clusters.
Embedded generation refers to power produced within the distribution network, right where it is needed, instead of relying on transmission from distant plants through the fragile national grid.
Embedded plants serve local areas directly.
The meeting provided IBEDC customers with the opportunity to physically present their complaints and challenges regarding stable power supply needed to run their businesses.
Issues discussed included customer band allocation and supply hours per day, high voltage, incessant power outages, and fluctuations, among others.
Agoha assured consumers that IBEDC had begun implementing digital monitoring systems that would provide near real-time visibility of power supply performance at customer endpoints.
According to him, the initiative will enable faster fault detection, proactive maintenance, and transparent service reporting.
“This meeting is particularly significant because it coincides with the celebration of Customer Service Week 2025, a global event dedicated to appreciating customers and the professionals who serve and support them.
“The theme for this year’s celebration, ‘Mission: Possible,’ captures our renewed energy toward making the impossible possible by delivering the quality, reliable, and consistent power supply that Nigerians deserve.
“We are institutionalising a structured Key Account Management model that integrates regular engagements, both physical and virtual, to ensure continuous feedback, better planning, and shared accountability between IBEDC and its premium customers.
“The challenges in Nigeria’s power sector are well known. However, we firmly believe that collaboration is the bridge to improvement.
“When customers and service providers work as partners, the solutions we develop are more sustainable and impactful.
“Feedback from this meeting will form the foundation for our service improvement roadmap and future engagements across our franchise area,” he said.
Agoha further stated that each Maximum Demand (MD) customer had been assigned a dedicated relationship manager to ensure faster complaint resolution, proactive communication, and tailored service delivery.
The event also featured a question-and-answer session on several power-related issues, including effective collaboration and communication channels between IBEDC and customers, prompt electrical fault detection, and the replacement of outdated equipment, among others
By Yunus Yusuf and By Olatunde Ajayi