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Awkuzu Street Residents Lament Two-Month Black Out

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9 years ago

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Residents of  Awkuzu
Street in Mile One, Diobu, Port Harcourt, have lamented a two-month power outage as the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) insisted on payment of 60 per cent debt arrears before restoring light in the area.
Some of the electricity consumers in the area alleged that even when they had paid their bills up to date, the firm had continued to deny them supply.
One of the residents who identified herself as Comfort said the outage has become a big challenge as she could no longer run her business profitably in the area.
“I’m relatively new here but I am not owing PHED a kobo, but for nearly two months I have seen a flicker of light and this situation is frustrating  my business”, she said.
The chairman, Awkuzu Light committee, Mr Etuk Umoetuk, who spoke to our correspondent yesterday said efforts to get PHED restore light in the area has remained unsuccessful.
He narrated that on 22nd June 2016, staff of PHED came and after testing the transformer, said it was faulty and beyond repair.
According to Umoetuk, “the company said they had no transformer to replace the faulty one for us and that the only option available was for us to pay at least 60 per cent of all the residents owe the firm.
The committee chairman alleged that while computing the 60 per cent of debt owed, the officials of PHED included the periods when there was blackout, a situation that was objected to, by the residents.
He said, a total of N9million was demanded from the residents and that included charges that were recorded at periods there was no light in the area.
Worried by the frustrating situation he said the residents mobilised in large number to state a protest to both the Moscow Road Head Office of the firm and its Business Centre office in D/Line but on seeing the crowd, the Divisional Police Officer of Mile One Area Command, advised them to send only ten representatives to the PHED offices instead of mass protest because of security situation a suggestion that was agreed.
According to him, at the D/Line office, the Business manager accused them of reconnecting those owing the firm each time field workers of PHED disconnected them.
“But the real situation is that after disconnecting customer that had not paid, staff of PHED normally turn back to reconnect them when they had been offered bribe,” Umoetuk alleged.
He said to raise the 60 per cent debt owed by residents of the street, the committee had started laying both those who are owing and those that are up to date in bill payment to pay as to enable them arrive at the amount demanded.
“Though PHED had promised restoring light but we are yet to see it,” he added.
Efforts to get response of the Corporate Communications Manager of PHED, Mr Jonah Iboma, could not yield result as he could not be reached through his phone line.
 

Chris Oluoh

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PENGASSAN Tasks Multinationals On Workers’ Salary Increase 

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5 days ago

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December 8, 2025

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The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has asked companies in the oil and gas sector to undertake urgent review of salaries of their workers in view of the prevailing harsh economic conditions in the country.
Also, the pensioners of Chevron Nigeria, under the aegis PenCoN, have lauded the President of PENGASSAN, Comrade Festus Osifo and his executive on their unrelenting efforts toward addressing pension abnormalities faced by retired workers in the oil and gas industry.
The association also appealed to the federal government to take necessary measures to check banditry and terrorist activities in parts of the country.
PENGASSAN President, Osifo who addressed journalists shortly after the National Executive Council meeting of the association in Abuja, at the weekend, said that though a lot of success has been recorded in negotiating salary reviews for its members, there are still organisations that have failed to lift their workers from the present harsh economic situation.
He said within this period, PENGASSAN has signed numerous Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) which has brought smiles to the faces of its teeming members.
“This is because we recognise that our job, literally, is how to protect the job of our members, and how to enhance their pay,” he said.
Osifo said that operators in the oil and gas sectors always go for the best qualified professionals to carry out their operations.
“So, the same way they recruit the best, we also challenge them to provide the best condition of service and provide the best remuneration.
“Yes, today, a lot of companies will have achieved successes, but there are still few that we are still discussing at their CBAs, that we are not yet there.
“We still use this opportunity to call on these companies that are still foot dragging, that are still holding back, even with the massive devaluation that has occurred in our country, that still don’t want to fix the remuneration of our members.
“We are calling on them to do the needful, because for us in PENGASSAN we will push without holding back. We will push, using everything in our arsenal, to ensure that the needful is done,” he said.
Osifo spoke of the dispute with the Dangote Refinery group, saying there are still pending issues to be resolved.
“Gentlemen of the press, during the networking session, we also looked at the issues that are plaguing some of our branches, and you know that recently, we had some challenges in Dangote Refinery and PetroChemicals Ltd.
“And within this period, since our last National Industrial Action, we have been engaging them in a lot of conversations, but the issues are not fully resolved. There are still a lot of pending issues.
“Yes, the NEC decided that, yes, let us still consummate that process by pushing those issues, by engaging in dialogue to resolve the issues, and by also engaging all our social partners and stakeholders to get the issues resolved,” he said.
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SEC Unveils Digital Regulatory Hub To Boost Oversight Across Financial Markets

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5 days ago

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December 8, 2025

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The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has launched the Regulatory Hub, a new centralized digital platform designed to streamline collaboration, strengthen oversight, and improve transparency across Nigeria’s financial and capital market ecosystem.
The Commission disclosed this in a statement posted on its website.
According to the commission, the platform connects key regulatory and security institutions including the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), and Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), enabling them to exchange information securely and in real time.
The launch of this regulatory hub comes ahead of the implementation of new tax laws in January 2026, with agencies such as the FIRS spreading its tentacles across sector to monitor compliance.
According to the SEC Director-General, Emomotimi Agama, the launch marks a significant step toward modernizing Nigeria’s regulatory framework through technology.
“The Regulatory Hub is a major step in our commitment to leverage technology for stronger regulatory synergy. By connecting regulators on one platform, we are building resilience, enhancing market integrity, and promoting investor confidence,” he said.
The SEC said the platform would help reduce bottlenecks in regulatory processes and facilitate faster, more informed decision-making across agencies.
Reinforcing the DG’s comments, the Executive Commissioner, Operations, Bola Ajomale, highlighted the operational benefits of the new system.
“The platform will significantly improve the timeliness and quality of regulatory decision-making. It provides a single window for regulators to share data, respond to requests, and collaborate seamlessly in safeguarding our financial and capital markets,” he said.
The commission believes the Regulatory Hub would support its broader mandate to strengthen investor protection, enhance market stability, and harmonize regulatory activities across the financial sector.
It urged stakeholders to initiate interest by emailing the Commission, adding that once registered, participants would be able to access the Hub and take advantage of its features.
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NAFDAC Decries Circulation Of Prohibited Food Items In markets …….Orders Vendors’ Immediate Cessation Of Dealings With Products 

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5 days ago

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December 8, 2025

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The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has raised an alarm over the growing circulation of banned food products across markets in the country.
The agency, in a Press Release dated 6 December 2025, warned that these items including pasta, noodles, sugar and tomato paste are expressly listed on the Federal Government’s Customs Prohibition List and are illegal to import.
NAFDAC stated that the sale and distribution of such prohibited items violate national trade laws, compromise the integrity of Nigeria’s food control system, and pose significant public health risks, as they have not undergone the agency’s mandatory safety and quality evaluations.

Importers, market traders, and supermarket operators have therefore, been directed to immediately cease all dealings in these items and to notify their supply chain partners to halt transactions involving prohibited products.

The agency emphasized that failure to comply will attract strict enforcement measures, including seizure and destruction of goods, suspension or revocation of operational licences, and prosecution under relevant laws.

The statement said “The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has raised an alarm over the growing incidence of smuggling, sale, and distribution of regulated food products such as pasta, noodles, sugar, and tomato paste currently found in markets across the country.

“These products are expressly listed on the Federal Government’s Customs Prohibition List and are not permitted for importation”.

NAFDAC also called on other government bodies, including the Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Immigration Service(NIS) Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Nigeria Shippers Council, and the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), to collaborate in enforcing the ban on these unsafe products.

By: Lady Godknows Ogbulu
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