Economic and social activities have been on hold in Komu, Babaode and Igbojaye communities in Itesiwaju Local Government Area of Oke-Ogun, Oyo State, as residents cried out to Governor Seyi Makinde, the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe and the management of the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) to rescue them from six years of total blackout
The prolonged blackout, according to the residents, has crippled economic activities, forced businesses to shut down or relocate, disrupted students’ studies and heightened security concerns across the two agrarian communities in Oke-Ogun.
Speaking with newsmen, a community leader in Babaode, Mr Theophilus Oguntona, said the community had been without electricity for the past six years, blaming the situation on damaged electricity poles linking the community to the power supply network.
Oguntona explained that some of the electric wires connected to the poles had been cut off by dry trees pulled down by wind, leaving the community disconnected from electricity for years.
He said residents had made several efforts to assist in clearing the bushes around the electricity poles in order to provide easy access for officials of the distribution company, but those efforts had not resulted in the restoration of power.
“Efforts by residents who cleared the bushes around the electric poles for easy access to officials of the Electricity Distribution Company have not yielded fruitful results, as residents have been abandoned to their fate,” Oguntona lamented.
According to him, the prolonged blackout has taken a heavy toll on the local economy, particularly artisans and small business owners whose livelihoods depend on electricity.
He noted that welders, barbers, tailors and cold-room operators had been forced either to shut down their businesses or relocate to communities with electricity, while students had also been deprived of the opportunity to study at night.
Residents of Komu, another community within the same local government area, also expressed similar concerns, saying the prolonged blackout had compounded their security challenges.
The residents said the absence of electricity had made it difficult for people to remain outside their homes after dark, forcing many to return indoors as early as 7pm.
“Residents stay indoors as from 7pm due to the security situation in the country. We are appealing to the government and relevant agencies to come to our aid.“
“We will be glad if we can have electricity restored latest by December this year,” they pleaded.
The residents appealed to Governor Makinde and the management of IBEDC to urgently intervene in the situation and restore electricity to the two communities before the end of the year.
They said restoring power would not only revive economic activities and support small businesses but also improve security, enable students to study at night and ease the socio-economic hardship that residents have endured for six years.
