Titus Eleweke, South East Editor
ENUGU, Nigeria – The Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), through its subsidiary, First Power Electricity Distribution Company (FpEDC), has plunged residents of Amudo Village, Awka, into prolonged darkness,allegedly as punishment for exposing an extortion scheme linked to the repair of a faulty transformer.
Mr. Okechukwu Okafor, Managing Director of FpEDC, reportedly stated during a recent interaction that he ordered the disconnection of electricity supply to over 100,000 residents as proof that the company did not levy customers for transformer repairs.
However, residents of the Amudo community maintain that they were compelled to contribute between ₦2,000 and ₦5,000—depending on the size of their homes or shops—to fund the repair of a transformer that had been out of service for more than three weeks.
Mr. Okechukwu Obeta, a journalist and resident of the community, undertook his civic responsibility to hold those in power accountable by reporting on the levies and documenting his own contribution. Several residents corroborated this claim, stating that an understanding had been reached with FpEDC management for the community to raise funds to fix the damaged transformer.
Mr. Afam Nwanna, Chairman of the village, confirmed that residents were levied but stated that the funds were intended for CCTV. This raises a critical question: did the Amudo community have an issue with CCTV installation or with a damaged transformer?
The chairman should provide a clear account of the funds collected and the purpose for which they were collected.
Voice notes circulating online indicate that members of the Amudo community were asked to contribute between ₦2,000 and ₦5,000 to restore their damaged transformer.
Insideoutnewsng.com investigation revealed that, during one of the meetings between First Power and the Amudo community, it was established that the community had raised ₦1.1 million, with an additional ₦1 million required to meet the total of ₦2.1 million. There is also evidence suggesting that electricity was restored immediately after the payment was made.
Given that this was presented as an unofficial process, requesting official receipts should not be contentious. It is, in fact, common practice that communities contribute to the repair of damaged transformers.
It is also reported that First Power has constituted a probe panel to investigate Mr. Obeta’s report. If the company is genuinely interested in transparency, it should expand this probe to include residents across Anambra State to provide accounts of their experiences when transformers were damaged.
Recalled the Mr Izunna Okafor, the company’s Communications Manager, was quoted as sympathizing with residents over the blackout while advising them to raise the ₦2.1 million “as requested” to expedite the restoration of power.
“It is the responsibility of our company to replace the vandalised transformer, but if you wait for the company to act, it may not happen soon, and that could leave them in darkness indefinitely,” he stated.
Following the public exposure of this arrangement—which effectively shifted the responsibility for infrastructure repair from the company to consumers—the Managing Director allegedly ordered a fresh disconnection of power to the area. This action appears aimed at turning residents against the journalist and discrediting the report.
It is particularly troubling that a company which previously deployed various tactics—including alleged threats to prevent electricity consumers in Anambra from protesting poor power supply on March 14—would now admit to deliberately cutting power over a report it finds inconvenient.
Through this action, Mr. Okafor appears to have shifted attention from the company’s inability to provide consistent electricity to targeting Mr. Obeta as the supposed cause of the outage.
How does one explain a situation in which a service provider punishes over 100,000 innocent customers—while also forfeiting its own revenue—simply to intimidate a journalist and deflect from its operational failures?
If, indeed, EEDC or FpEDC did not directly or indirectly compel residents to fund the transformer repairs, a formal rebuttal or clarification would have sufficed. Instead, the decision to disrupt electricity supply represents a breach of trust and a violation of its contractual obligations to customers.
Reports indicate that Mr. Okafor has demanded that Mr. Obeta retract his story and issue an apology, despite substantial evidence that residents were required to contribute funds.
Disturbingly, the life and safety of Mr. Okechukwu Obeta now appear to be at risk, given the volume of threats he has allegedly received. He has reportedly filed complaints with the Anambra State Police Command and the Department of State Services (DSS), and is currently in hiding for fear of his life.
Mr. Obeta is widely regarded as a diligent and principled journalist who has consistently amplified the voices of underserved communities and driven meaningful change through his reporting.
It is unacceptable for any official to endanger the life of a journalist in an attempt to mask institutional failure. If Mr. Okafor claims that electricity cannot be supplied to Amudo Village because of a media report, how then does he account for persistent outages in Okpuno, Agu-Awka, Ifite, Amawbia, Udoka, and Ngozika Estates?
We call on the Anambra State Government—particularly the Anambra State Electricity Regulatory Agency—as well as the Department of State Services and the Nigeria Police Force, to urgently intervene. They must caution Mr. Okafor against further actions that undermine public trust and take concrete steps to ensure the safety and protection of Mr. Obeta and other journalists.
The role of the press in holding power to account is enshrined in Section 22 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and it must be protected at all costs.
