Kogi Flood: IDPs accuse AEDC
of issuing crazy electricity bills to flood Victims
IDRIS AHMED, LOKOJA: As the effects of the ravaging flood continue to bite harder on residents of Lokoja, the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) has taken turn to add salt to injury on the flood victims by allocating outrageous Electricity bills to houses that were submerged by the flood disaster.
Some of the residents who discovered that their houses were submerged by water for the past two months are still stranded despite the flood receding in their areas.
Read more: Fleeing Kabba prisoner re arrested, while vandalising AEDC transformer in Kogi
While still living with the shock of their woes, the victims are again being confronted with electricity bills hanging on their properties, demanding payment of electricity bills for the months flood occupied their houses.
The flood victims are now faced with multiple problems including AEDC”s heartless demands, despite knowing fully that they have lost properties and displaced looking for where to take refuge.
” We are taken aback by the fact that the AEDC still went ahead to bill us, even when those properties were conspicuously submerged by the flood. We are wondering why such drastic measures should be meted out on us even in our trying period.” A victim at Adankolo in Lokoja lamented.
Some of the residents who spoke to our correspondent, demanded to know the rational behind the outrageous Electricity bills even when AEDC is fully aware they did not consumed a single unit of electricity, as they were away from the houses occasioned by the flood.
Mr Jordan Temitope who owned a house in Gadumo Community in Lokoja lamented that while other corporate organization were magnanimously busy donating relief materials and cash to flood victims, what the AEDC could do is to make life more difficult for victims.
According to the victims the AEDC in their cruelty increased the bills by over 40 percent in such a time like this.
The people of Lokoja further lamented that after the flood had crippled the economy of the state by the devastating effect on their livelihood the AEDC still have the inordinate desire for extortion by increasing the electricity bills.
Read also: Kogi Court Sentences AEDC Staff To 6 Months In Prison Over Unlawful Disconnection.
Mr Samson Okeme who represents a group of flood victims in old Poly quarters extension, also lamented that before the flood he paid N8000 monthly estimated bill, only receive N27,000 bill from AEDC when the water receded.
” When I returned to the house as the flood water receded from my place, I met a Bill of 27000 naira for the period my family and I were displaced at an IDP camp. As we are still crying over the loses of some of our properties, the insensitive AEDC saw the sad situation as an advantage to make profits.”Mr Okeme said.
