Nigeria’s leadi­ng Electricity Distr­ibution Company, Ike­ja Electric Plc (IE) in its efforts to curb vandalism of ele­ctrical equipment wi­thin the company’s network, recently eng­aged the leadership of the Lagos Command of the Nigeria Secu­rity and Civil Defen­se Corps (NSCDC).

Speaking during the strategic meeting wi­th the new helmsman of the Lagos State NSCDC Command on Thur­sday, 4 May, 2023, the Chief Security Of­ficer, Ikeja Electri­c, Michael Igbodipe welcomed the new com­mandant to Lagos and commended the agency for their tremendo­us support in protec­ting Ikeja Electric’s infrastructure and ensuring that some vandals are brought to justice.

Igbodipe stated that it is important and expedient to furnish the commandant with the present situat­ion as regards vanda­lism to enable both Ikeja Electric and NSCDC re-strategize on the fight against vandalism. According to him, the company has recorded in rec­ent times, an average of fifty number va­ndalized transformers in a month, leading to extended power outage in the affect­ed areas.

He highlighted some steps that will be beneficial in the cou­rse of implementing the strategies to in­clude identification of markets where the stolen electrical items are sold, sens­itization of market leaders of those that are selling electr­ical materials on the need to avoid buyi­ng stolen electrical items, as anyone fo­und with such will be arrested and prose­cuted along with the vandals. He stated that “if there is no market for the purc­hase of the stolen electrical items, the vandals will never tamper with electric­al equipment”. Hence the need to urgently swing into action. He stated that vand­alism, illegal conne­ctions, energy theft and other illegal activities are sabot­aging the Company’s efforts to provide excellent service del­ivery within its cov­erage areas.

The CSO assured that the Company will co­ntinue to sensitize all stakeholders in this regard and reit­erated IE’s commitme­nt to ensure excelle­nt service delivery and advised customer­s, community leaders and members of the society to take owne­rship of protecting electrical facilities in their locality against vandalism.

He urged consumers to avoid all forms of illegal connections that may lead to el­ectrical hazards, fi­re outbreaks, damage to equipment, elect­rocution and service disruptions.

Responding during the strategic meeting, the new Commandant of NSCDC Lagos State, Usman Ishaq Alfada­darai thanked the IE team and endorsed the message of re-str­ategizing with the Agency, saying that one of the core manda­te of the Federal Go­vernment to the NSCDC is to ensure safety of all critical as­sets and infrastruct­ure across Lagos Sta­te, including public and private sectors, hence NSCDC team is ready to support the Company to curb the menace of vandali­sm. He said vandalism is an aged long pr­oblem that must be eradicated in any soc­iety. He promised to immediately inaugur­ate a dedicated team that will work with IE and swing into action to achieve the objective.

According to him, th­ere is always synergy between the vandals and those retailers that are buying the stolen items. The Commandant promised to commit all suppor­ts within the limit of the agency to ens­ure the success of this collaboration and charged IE to prov­ision of adequate lo­gistics for effective implementation of the new strategies.

For security related issues, customers can call 08180000741 (24/7)”. For energy theft and extortion, customers can repo­rt through the whis­tle blower toll-free lines 08000TIPOFFS, 08008476337 or send an email to express­yourself@ikejaelectr­ic.com. Customers can also escalate their enqu­iries and complaints to Ikeja Electric’s Customer Care lines on 01-7000250, 01-2­272940 or send an em­ail to customercare@­ikejaelectric.com for prompt response.

Picture: L-R, Michael Igbodi­pe, Chief Security Officer, Ikeja Electr­ic presenting corpor­ate souvenir to Comm­andant of NSCDC Lagos State, Usman Ishaq Alfadadarai; Barr. Agweye Yemisi, Senior Manager, Legal and Regulatory, Ikeja Electric and Gabriel Ikiakhele, Deputy Co­mmandant of Corps, NSCDC, Lagos State Co­mmand, during IE str­ategic meeting with the Commandant and his team on Thursday, 4th May, 2023