Connect with us

Business

Ejigbo Residents Decry Outrageous Electricity Bills

Published

9 years ago

on

Some residents of Ejigbo in Lagos State have decried what they described as “outrageous bills” often issued to them by Ikeja Electricity Company (IEC).
The Spokesman of the group, Mr Ugochukwu Agwunwa, made their position known in an interview with newsmen on Thursday.
He said the area had been neglected by the company for so long.
Agwunwa said that poor services were also their lots after several complaints.
He alleged that IEC only distributed outrageous bills and deliberately refused to supply the residents with prepaid meters.
Agwunwa appealed to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to wade into the problem, saying that some of the staff were feeding fat on their customers.
He also alleged that some members of the Community Development Association conspired with IEC staff to rip-off over 19,000 residents of houses in the area.
“The community is begging for prepaid meters and the Ikeja Electric Company does not want to answer the people, because they created the problem due to the gains they make from estimated bills.
“They bring huge bills every month. When residents fail to pay, they come with their ladder to disconnect.
“The people are tired and they demand that their prepaid meters be installed so that they could pay for what they consume.
“We have written to all the company’s offices in Oke-Afa, Okota, Ikeja but they have failed to intervene. We are tired of estimated bills,” Agwunwa said.
According to him, there are 19,000 customers in our community.
“They have provided prepaid meters for communities in the interior and skipped our area.
“We are no longer going to tolerate this. We are ready to fight until our areas are flooded with prepaid meters,” he said.
Agwunwa said the group had also petitioned the Commissioner of Police, Mr Fatai Owoseni, over questionable activities.
When The Tide source contacted the office of the Business Manager of Oke-Afa Unit of IEC through his mobile phone number; an unidentified fellow denied all the allegations.
The fellow who did not disclose his identity, said the residents of Ejigbo had yet to get prepaid meters because it was not their turn.
“The houses we disconnected were those owing the company three months and above. We do not disconnect houses based on estimated bills.
“The supply of the prepaid meters is an ongoing exercise. We cannot supply the meters to all the areas at the same time.
“It is not the turn of the people complaining to have their prepaid meters,” the unidentified fellow said.

Related Topics:
Continue Reading

Business

Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

Published

2 days ago

on

September 22, 2025

By

Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.

Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.

The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.

Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.

“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.

“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”

Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.

In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.

Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.

Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.

 

Continue Reading

Business

NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

Published

2 days ago

on

September 22, 2025

By

The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure during an inspection of the Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja, last Thursday.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
According to him, the centralised production system aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for improved service delivery.
Continue Reading

Business

FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

Published

2 days ago

on

September 22, 2025

By

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) platforms across key sectors of the economy, starting in early 2026.
Director of E-Government and Digital Economy at NITDA, Dr. Salisu Kaka, made the disclosure in Abuja during a stakeholder review session of the DPI and NGDX drafts at the Digital Public Infrastructure Live Event.
The forum, themed “Advancing Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure through Standards, Data Exchange and e-Government Transformation,” brought together regulators, state governments, and private sector stakeholders to harmonise inputs for building inclusive, secure, and interoperable systems for governance and service delivery.
According to Kaka, Nigeria already has several foundational elements in place, including national identity systems and digital payment platforms.
What remains is the establishment of the data exchange framework, which he said would be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Before the end of this year and by next year we will be fully ready with the foundational element, and we start dropping the use cases across sectors,” Kaka explained.
He stressed that the federal government recognises the autonomy of states urging them to align with national standards.
“If the states can model and reflect what happens at the national level, then we can have a 360-degree view of the whole data exchange across the country and drive all-of-government processes,” he added.
Continue Reading

Trending