"Benefits Of "Crazy Billing" By PHCN -Reaon Behind Electricity ProblemsNigerians have welcome the introduction of the pre-paid meters with open arms but have had to gasp and groan when they could only see it and could not have it. The management of PHCN made various announcements that the equipment is available but yet many consumers have cried out that they still could not procure them after having paid the statutory connection fee of N25,000 for single phase and N55,000 for three-phase as the case may be.
A consumer who lives in Surulere has this to say: the so called prepaid meters are nowhere to be seen around here. Take a walk from this Itire down to Ijesha, I tell you there is hardly a house that can boast of a pre-paid meter. We have heard with it you can actually monitor how much you spend on electricity but here, there is no such luxury. Look at the situation now, in the last five 5 months we have been having electricity for just about three-four hours per day and some days there would be no power supply at all but our bills have been almost constant. PHCN brings a bill of not less than N5,000 per month. There was a month our transformer was out for 16 days, meaning there was no electricity for two weeks but when it came to the bills nothing reflected on it. The amount was as constant as ever. PHCN still brought a bill of over N4,000Even the NERC boss has accused the management of PHCN of willfully thwarting its own meter deployment scheme in a bid to exploit electricity consumers through its practice of crazy billing. That tendency, he noted, accounts for cases of people in residential areas who pay more than companies. According to him, Even though they have meters, the distribution companies dont go and read these meters. Other consumers, residential and industrial, who had paid sums as high as between N23,000 and N40,000 per unit of prepaid meters since 2009 have yet to be provided with the meters, while PHCN has chosen to operate in total disregard for decency and statutes.Those who are lucky to have the pre-paid meters have been singing songs of praise for the scheme. A consumer, Mr. Adeolubodun who lives in Mushin said the PHCN prepaid meter is a blessing to me. Apart from the fact that it allows you to budget your money well it also cut off having to deal with unscrupulous PHCN staff who ask for money for all sorts of services. Before I acquire this meter I was paying between 3,000 to 7, 000 every month but now with a card of 7,000 I can enjoy power supply for more than 6 monthsBut if the recent pronouncement of PHCN through its Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company, penultimate Thursday is anything to be believed the pre-paid meters may soon reach the homes.Principal Manager, Public Affairs of the company, Pekun Adeyanju, has said prepaid metres are available for electricity customers who desire to have them. While reacting to allegations by some customers that the organisation is deliberately hoarding the meter to perpetuate estimated billing, Adeyanju said that the PPM is a priority of the management and that 7,000 are being deployed to customers all over the network of the company monthly. In fact, the CEO, Engr. O.C. Akamnonu, has directed the Customer Service Department to increase deployment to 10,000 on a monthly basis.
"The 19 northern governors on Thursday rose in defence of the Presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change, Major-General Muhammadu Buhari.
Buharis party on Wednesday had described the Jonathan administration as the most corrupt ever, in response to the Presidency and the Peoples Democratic Partys attacks on his person over a comment in which the retired General threatened bloodshed in 2015 if the government dared rig the elections.The northern governors on Thursday said Buharis comment was in order, observing that many eminent Nigerians had made worse comments.Chairman of the Northern Governors Forum, Babangida Aliyu, during a question-and-answer session with journalists after the Forums meeting in Kaduna, noted that Buhari had only sought to keep the Federal Government on its toes in order to ensure a free-and-fair election in 2015.Aliyu is the governor of Niger State and a member of the PDP. Like Aliyu, the majority of the northern governors belong to the PDP.The PDP had said that Buhari was bloodthirsty and suffering from combat withdrawal syndrome.Aliyu, who spoke on behalf of his colleagues, explained that what Buhari meant was that govenment should not go and do bad election.He noted that Buharis statement was subject to different interpretation and cautioned eminent Nigerians against further inflammatory statements that could heat up the polity.He said, In a democratic system every individual has his ways and there are many of us whose ways of communication are quite different from others. Give the same statement to somebody, he may have used a different vocabulary.Again, certain facts are understood, that if this happens that would happen, I think it is a natural thing to do. Maybe those who may be too concerned have not looked at what other eminent Nigerians have been talking about.I saw one that said Nigeria is going to be Somalianised. I saw another one who has been talking like there would be war tomorrow. That statement should be taken on its own value.All of us who are involved in elections political parties, contestants and voters themselves we must all be careful so that there would be a semblance of good in whatever we do. But, again, like I said, certain people are so much in that position, they should be careful with certain vocabularies they use. So, both ways lets take it on our own strides and ensure that future elections are seemed to be transparent and are seemed to be good.Buhari had made his now controversial comment while hosting members of the CPC from Niger State who had paid him a courtesy visit in Kaduna.God willing, by 2015, something will happen. They either conduct a free and fair election or they go a very disgraceful way. If what happened in 2011 (alleged rigging) should again happen in 2015, by the grace of God, the dog and the baboon would all be soaked in blood, he reportedly told his party men.The Presidency had issued a quick response via a statement by Jonathans spokesman, Reuben Abati, saying Buharis statement was saddening and not worthy of a statesman.The PDP, in an earlier reaction, had lambasted Buhari and asked the Federal Government to engage him in order to cure him of what the party said was combat withdrawal syndrome haunting the ex-head of state.If the retired general was suffering from combat withdrawal syndrome, then the Federal Government should allow him to lead the ECOWAS military contingent to Mali or Guinea Bissau to enable him an opportunity to exorcise the bloodletting demons apparently haunting him, publicity secretary of the PDP, Olisa Metuh, said at press briefing in Abuja on Tuesday.However, the opposition Action Congress of Nigeria had also on Wednesday lent its support to Buharis warning.We hold no brief for anyone. But it is true that if elections are rigged, as they have been so shamelessly and brazenly done by the PDP since 1999, naturally people will react, and in doing so it is impossible for anyone to predict how far things can go, the party said in a statement by its spokesman, Lai Mohammed.In a communiqu by the northern governors on Thursday, they noted the worsening state of security in their region and resolved to intensify efforts at finding lasting solutions to the problem by reaching out to all stakeholders.The communiqu reads in part, The alarming state of insecurity in the Northern states was discussed, thereafter, the Forum resolved as follows:We shall intensify efforts to find lasting solutions to the problem by reaching out to all stakeholders.The Forum cautioned eminent Nigerians against making inflammatory statement capable of affecting our fragile unity and security. We must be concerned with unity and development of the country in all ramifications.Meanwhile, the South-East chapter of the PDP on Thursday cautioned Buhari and described his contentious statement as incendiary and bereft of patriotic intent.The PDPs national vice-chairman in the zone, Col. Austin Akobundu (retd.), in a statement, applauded the prompt reaction of the Presidency and PDP to Buharis outbursts.The lamentable and wanton killing of South-Easterners, the shedding of the blood of our promising graduates on National Youth Service, soon after a similar speech by the CPC Presidential candidate after he lost the 2011 elections, informed the urgency of our speaking out now, Akobundu said.
"THREE years to the next general elections, the battle line for the 2015 presidential race appears drawn. Multiple reliable sources in government and the Peoples Democratic Party told our correspondents over the weekend that prominent Northern politicians, including governors, were plotting to stop President Goodluck Jonathans alleged bid for a second term.
This is in spite of the denial by the Presidency that Jonathan has no re-election ambition. The President, in a statement by his spokesman, Reuben Abati, had said the speculations about his second term bid were the handiwork of mischief makers and opportunists.The PUNCH, however, gathered that the Presidencys denial was not believed by Northern politicians. Our correspodents report that those who are bent on stopping Jonathan are hoping to use the budding presidential ambitions of Governors Murtala Nyako (Adamawa), Isa Yuguda (Bauchi) and Babangida Aliyu (Niger) as rallying points for Northern voters.This plan is, however, likely to meet with stiff opposition. Some groups, in the South-South, have commenced activities to counter all opposition to the Presidents second term. Already, the Ijaw National Congress has accused the North of a moral deficit in asking for the number one job in 2015.Aliyu, at the Northern Governors Forum meeting in Kaduna on Thursday, had vowed that the North would not allow the 2015 presidency to elude it.We must be united more than ever to go into the 2015 elections as one entity with the aim of producing the President, he had told his colleagues.A member of the PDP National Working Committee, who spoke in confidence with one of our correspondents, said, The journeys of some of the northern governors across the country are part of the subtle campaigns for the Presidency.Investigations showed that the plot to stop Jonathan is spearheaded by governors who are no longer seeking second term tickets. They, findings show, are leading the campaign for the return of the Presidency to the North. A source in the PDP told our correspodents that the governors were doing this because they wanted to contest for the Presidency in 2015.Out of the 19 states in the North, the PDP controls 14 Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, Plateau, Sokoto and Taraba.The All Nigeria Peoples Party is in control of Borno, Yobe and Zamfara -while the Congress for Progressive Change is in charge of Nasarawa.Out of the 14 PDP states, 12 of the governors are serving their second term in office. Only four, which are those of Kaduna, Gombe, Kwara and Kogi are in their first term.Among the northern governors who are in their second terms, only the governors of Gabriel Suswan (Benue), Danbaba Suntai (Taraba) and David Jang (Plateau) are likely to support Jonathans second bid.Governor of Kwara State, Alhaji AbdulFatai Ahmed, The PUNCH gathered, might not support the Presidents second term.Ahmeds godfather, who is also his predecessor, Dr. Bukola Saraki, is believed to be having problems with the President.The governors elected on the platform of the PDP, after the partys National Executive Committee meeting on August 13, 2010, had only agreed to support Jonathan for a single term of four years.But Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson, in an interview with journalists on Saturday in Lagos, said the clamour by some northern governors to have a president from the North in 2015 would amount to ethnicity or the regionalisation of the office.Dickson, a protege of the President, said, The 2015 elections are still three years or more from now; it is too early; it will overheat the polity and distract the President.Dicksons statement came barely a week after Sunday PUNCH reported that Jonathans closest associates had begun the campaign for his 2015 presidential ambition.The report had quoted the National Vice-Chairman, South-South Zone of the party, Dr. Stephen Oru, as saying in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, that, The PDP must triumph in the July 14 governorship election in Edo State to provide a unified regional base for Jonathan to actualise his second term presidential ambition in 2015.Meanwhile, the Ijaw National Congress National Secretary, Mr. Robinson Esitel, on Sunday reacted to the position of the Northern Governors Forum on the 2015 presidential election.He said, The issue of who would become the President in 2015 is a choice that will be made by Nigerians as a whole and not by a section.The Ijaw nation insists categorically that Jonathans Presidency is not a Presidency of four years, but a Presidency of eight years under the constitution and subject to the good conscience of Nigerians.The North should not blame the perceived underdevelopment of the region on anybody. They have been in governance of this country, both under the military and civilain regimes, for the better part of the time that this country has been in existence.
"THREE years to the next general elections, the battle line for the 2015 presidential race appears drawn. Multiple reliable sources in government and the Peoples Democratic Party told our correspondents over the weekend that prominent Northern politicians, including governors, were plotting to stop President Goodluck Jonathans alleged bid for a second term.This is in spite of the denial by the Presidency that Jonathan has no re-election ambition. The President, in a statement by his spokesman, Reuben Abati, had said the speculations about his second term bid were the handiwork of mischief makers and opportunists.The PUNCH, however, gathered that the Presidencys denial was not believed by Northern politicians. Our correspodents report that those who are bent on stopping Jonathan are hoping to use the budding presidential ambitions of Governors Murtala Nyako (Adamawa), Isa Yuguda (Bauchi) and Babangida Aliyu (Niger) as rallying points for Northern voters.This plan is, however, likely to meet with stiff opposition. Some groups, in the South-South, have commenced activities to counter all opposition to the Presidents second term. Already, the Ijaw National Congress has accused the North of a moral deficit in asking for the number one job in 2015.Aliyu, at the Northern Governors Forum meeting in Kaduna on Thursday, had vowed that the North would not allow the 2015 presidency to elude it.We must be united more than ever to go into the 2015 elections as one entity with the aim of producing the President, he had told his colleagues.A member of the PDP National Working Committee, who spoke in confidence with one of our correspondents, said, The journeys of some of the northern governors across the country are part of the subtle campaigns for the Presidency.Investigations showed that the plot to stop Jonathan is spearheaded by governors who are no longer seeking second term tickets. They, findings show, are leading the campaign for the return of the Presidency to the North. A source in the PDP told our correspodents that the governors were doing this because they wanted to contest for the Presidency in 2015.Out of the 19 states in the North, the PDP controls 14 Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, Plateau, Sokoto and Taraba.The All Nigeria Peoples Party is in control of Borno, Yobe and Zamfara -while the Congress for Progressive Change is in charge of Nasarawa.Out of the 14 PDP states, 12 of the governors are serving their second term in office. Only four, which are those of Kaduna, Gombe, Kwara and Kogi are in their first term.Among the northern governors who are in their second terms, only the governors of Gabriel Suswan (Benue), Danbaba Suntai (Taraba) and David Jang (Plateau) are likely to support Jonathans second bid.Governor of Kwara State, Alhaji AbdulFatai Ahmed, The PUNCH gathered, might not support the Presidents second term.Ahmeds godfather, who is also his predecessor, Dr. Bukola Saraki, is believed to be having problems with the President.The governors elected on the platform of the PDP, after the partys National Executive Committee meeting on August 13, 2010, had only agreed to support Jonathan for a single term of four years.But Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson, in an interview with journalists on Saturday in Lagos, said the clamour by some northern governors to have a president from the North in 2015 would amount to ethnicity or the regionalisation of the office.Dickson, a protege of the President, said, The 2015 elections are still three years or more from now; it is too early; it will overheat the polity and distract the President.Dicksons statement came barely a week after Sunday PUNCH reported that Jonathans closest associates had begun the campaign for his 2015 presidential ambition.The report had quoted the National Vice-Chairman, South-South Zone of the party, Dr. Stephen Oru, as saying in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, that, The PDP must triumph in the July 14 governorship election in Edo State to provide a unified regional base for Jonathan to actualise his second term presidential ambition in 2015.Meanwhile, the Ijaw National Congress National Secretary, Mr. Robinson Esitel, on Sunday reacted to the position of the Northern Governors Forum on the 2015 presidential election.He said, The issue of who would become the President in 2015 is a choice that will be made by Nigerians as a whole and not by a section.The Ijaw nation insists categorically that Jonathans Presidency is not a Presidency of four years, but a Presidency of eight years under the constitution and subject to the good conscience of Nigerians.The North should not blame the perceived underdevelopment of the region on anybody. They have been in governance of this country, both under the military and civilain regimes, for the better part of the time that this country has been in existence.
"Nigerians have been saved about N6.43tn since police road blocks were abolished a few months ago by the acting Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar.
The IG said this, citing a recent report on police road blocks, at an interactive session with traditional rulers, leaders of thought, businessmen and town union executives in Awka, Anambra State on Friday.He said it was a shame that Nigerians, who paid the police to protect them, were made to become victims at road blocks.He said the road blocks were gone for good they would never return to Nigerian roads.This is the only country in the world where roads are blocked with sticks, drums and all sorts of things in the name of police check points, he said.Abubakar said with the abolition of police road blocks, Nigerians have been saved about N6.43tn in terms of police extortion, losses and time management.He said with the removal of the road blocks, 70 per cent of the corruption in the police force had been removed.We are dealing with the real duties that the police force was set up to do, he said.Abubakar stated that a new code of conduct had been drawn up for policemen so that the citizens could know what to expect from the policemen that work with them.He added that 50,000 policemen would soon begin a reorientation training to prepare them for the changing face of the police in intelligence gathering, ethics and etiquette.He reiterated the ban on the use of siren and beacon light by civilians, saying the police would soon begin to arrest people using siren or beacon light.He said bail was and is still free and that women had the right to bail their wards at the police station.He urged Nigerians to report policemen who abuse their rights to higher police officers.He asked members of the public to give information about criminals and their activities to senior officers, like divisional police officers, to ensure confidentiality.Speakers at the forum, including the Chairman, Anambra State Elders Council, Dr. Dozie Ikedife; Igwe of Ndikelionwu, Prof. Chukwuemeka Ike; Chairman, Anambra State Security Trust Fund, Dr. Ajulu Uzodike, thanked the IG for the removal of road blocks.They advised that policemen should be properly equipped in order to check the activities of highway robbers, who had taken undue advantage of the removal of road blocks.
