Residents of Agbado-Oke-Odo Local Council Development Area of Lagos yesterday threatened to sue Ikeja Electric, the Minister of Power, Abubakar Aliyu, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), over the continued issuance of estimated bills by Ikeja Electric.
The residents, comprising 11 Community Development Associations (CDAs), also accused Ikeja Electric of deliberate rejection of the reading of functional meters and refusal to install prepaid meters.
They described the action as a flagrant flouting of extant laws and regulations in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).
The residents lamented that following alleged irregularities on the part of the company, over five million residents were subjected to untold hardship in communities such as Oke-Abiye; Ajasa; Agbelekale; Ifelagba; Pacesetter; Aniya; Tiwalade; Itesiwaju; Fafunwa, God’s Chosen; and Ariwajoye Community Development Association within the network of the AIT, Ipaja, Abule Taylor; and Aboru among others.
Addressing journalists on behalf of the residents, Chairman of Ajasa CDA, Mr. Akinola Adebowale, said the residents would approach the court to seek an interlocutory injunction to restrain Ikeja Electric from further issuance of crazy bills without the installation of prepaid meters.
He said they would also seek a refund of money paid through crazy bills from unmetered and prepaid meters from 2010 till date.
According to him, over six years after the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) ruled that estimated bills should be stopped in the affected communities, Ikeja Electric failed to comply and allowed the DISCO to continuously extort them and infringe on their rights as electricity consumers.
The residents explained that they were joining the NERC, the Minister of Juslice, Abubakar Malami as well as the Lagos State Commissioner for Justice, Moyosore Onigbanjo for failing to protect them from extortion by the Ikeja Electric.