The Obi-in-Council of Onitsha Kingdom on Wednesday hosted the Management of FirstPower Electricity Distribution Company Limited at the Palace of the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe, in a crucial engagement aimed at addressing the electricity-related concerns in the Onitsha Inland Town/Enu-Onitsha and environs.
Although the revered monarch was unavoidably absent during the meeting, he reportedly directed members of the Obi-in-Council to proceed with the engagement and extensively interface with the FirstPower team.
The meeting, which attracted members of the traditional council and top officials of FirstPower, turned into an open and frank conversation as the Obi-in-Council tabled their concerns over the power supply in the area. It also provided an opportunity for both parties to openly deliberate on the realities on ground, the technical and commercial constraints affecting service delivery, as well as the role of the company and the community in achieving sustainable improvement.
Speaking during the engagement and responding to the concerns raised by the Council, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of FirstPower Electricity Distribution Company Limited, Mr. Okechukwu Okafor, who noted that he was born and raised in Onitsha, gave a broad historical and network overview of electricity supply in the commercial city, particularly the Inland Town axis. He added that the company understands the strategic importance of Inland Town and the concerns raised over the power situation in the area.
The MD, however, explained that many of the challenges affecting electricity supply in the area go beyond ordinary power distribution issues, stressing that deliberate community involvement and cooperation would be necessary to achieve meaningful progress.
While stressing that there are deep-rooted technical, commercial and operational issues contributing to the problem; he noted that one of the major obstacles confronting the company in the area is the difficulty in properly identifying and restructuring electricity customers under the network, a process he described as necessary before effective metering and service improvement can fully take place.
According to him, despite intensified efforts toward mass metering and network improvement in the area, many customers still resist customer enumeration and unbundling, thereby complicating intervention plans. He emphasized the need for deliberate community support and cooperation, as sustainable electricity improvement cannot be achieved without accountability, proper customer data, and responsible energy usage.
The MD also highlighted some of the broader challenges confronting electricity distribution in Onitsha and Anambra State generally, including infrastructure limitations, energy losses, meter bypass, illegal connections, vandalism, and huge unpaid electricity debts.
Calling for deeper reflection and collective responsibility, he urged the community to see electricity as a critical service that requires partnership between the company and the consumers. The FirstPower team also used the opportunity to reassure the community that efforts were already ongoing to improve the situation in the area.
Providing technical insights into the situation, the FirstPower Chief Technical Officer, Dr. Emeka Egbujor, alongside the Head of Operations, Engr. Ifeoma Uba, explained that the existing network servicing Inland Town and adjoining areas has remained heavily overstretched over the years, thereby affecting the quality and stability of supply.
They however, disclosed that the company had already commenced strategic interventions, including creation of an additional feeder dedicated to improving electricity supply within the axis and reducing pressure on the current feeder arrangement. The officials further noted that the planned technical improvements would yield better results when combined with proper metering, customer cooperation, and improved energy accountability.
On her own part, the Chief Commercial Officer of FirstPower, Dr. Mrs. Nnenna Priscilla Obi, identified poor payment culture and accumulated electricity arrears as another major factor affecting service delivery in the area. According to her, many customers within Inland Town owe huge outstanding debts, while recovery of the debts and payments in the area have remained a serious challenge for the company.
She explained that electricity distribution, like every other business, is largely driven by sustainability and cost recovery, noting that areas with better payment compliance often enjoy more stable and improved supply because of the ability to sustain operational costs.
She further stressed that the planned feeder expansion and proposed service improvement would also require proper metering of customers to ensure transparency, accountability and efficient energy management.
Responding on behalf of the Obi-in-Council, prominent members of the Council, including Chief Albert Okey Ibekwe and Chief Dr. Okey Mike Areh, welcomed the engagement and described it as timely and productive.
The Council members assured the FirstPower team that the Inland Town community would constitute a central Electricity Committee with subsidiary structures to oversee electricity-related matters and interface directly with the company.
They also expressed support for the planned metering initiative, stressing that proper metering remains one of the best ways to ensure fairness, accountability, and better service delivery.
The Council further assured that the resolutions and concerns raised during the engagement would be communicated to the wider community and other relevant stakeholders, while pledging sustained collaboration with the FirstPower management toward finding lasting solutions to the electricity challenges facing the area.
The meeting, also witnessed by the EEDC Group Head, Human Resources, Nkiru Chukwuma; and the FirstPower District Business Manager for Onitsha District, Comrade Jachukwu Umunna, formed part of FirstPower’s ongoing stakeholder engagement drive aimed at strengthening collaboration with host communities, improving customer relations, and generally repositioning electricity service delivery across Anambra State.
