THE Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JED) says it has dismissed over 20 staff members for vandalism and electricity offences.
According to the JED managing director, Abudu Bello Mohammed, the decision was taken in line with the company’s zero tolerance for corruption, adding that the company would not spare any employee caught in the act of stealing its appliances.
“Not less than 20 staff have been shown the hard way out of the company on account of criminalities. I have zero tolerance for corruption,” Muhammed said on Wednesday, April 5 during the customer’s sensitization programme on band upgrade at the company’s ICT centre.
He vowed to deal decisively with any staff caught in financial malfeasance, or defrauding customers of the company.
The JED boss, admitting there were bad eggs in the system, assured customers that his administration was on top gear in dealing with employees who would want to bring the company into disrepute.
“Promptly report erring staff to management,” he told the company’s customers.
Mohammed said it was the desire of JED to give all its customers in its four franchise states uninterrupted power supply.
“Without sounding immodest, I am optimistic that you can at the moment attest to the regularity and stability of power supply in Plateau State.
“But despite the regularity, stability, and reliability of electricity supply to the customers, they hardly reciprocate in terms of payment for their consumed energy.
“The truth is that our postpaid customers hardly pay for their consumed energy, just as some of our prepaid customers are also involved in energy thievery.
“One of the vices militating against the operations of our company in Plateau is the menace of vandalism,” he said.
He urged customers to take ownership of electricity installations in their localities to stem the tide of the hydra-head monster and vandalism, disclosing that not less than 20 distribution transformers had been vandalized in March alone in Plateau State.
In his presentation, the company’s Chief Technical Officer, Hamisu Jigawa, lamented in his ‘Appraisal of Energy Intake and Ancillary Matters’, that the failure of the customers to meet their financial obligations to the company was tremendously affecting the entire energy market.
According to Jigawa, “The bill you are paying goes not only to Jos Electricity Distribution Plc but to the entire value-chain as even those who supply gas to the Gencos are also beneficiaries.”
He urged customers to endeavour to pay for their consumed energy to enable the company serve them diligently.
Harrison Edeh is a journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, always determined to drive advocacy for good governance through holding public officials and businesses accountable.