The Enugu Capital Territory Development Authority (ECTDA), on Tuesday, sealed the offices of the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) in Enugu State.
The action followed EEDC’s announcement that it would disconnect the power supply to the Enugu State Government House and other state government institutions in the South East over an N180bn debt.
EEDC’s spokesman, Emeka Ezeh, said upon arriving at the EEDC headquarters, he and other staff members found the building sealed.
“We were informed by the security men on duty that in the early hours of today (Tuesday) at about 2am, a group of men came and locked up the gates, claiming that the state governor directed the action,” he said.
In addition to the headquarters, EEDC offices in Abakpa, Awkunanaw and Ogui areas were also sealed by the agency.
Ezeh described the development as “strange”, noting that EEDC had not received any notice or communication from ECTDA regarding the action.
Ezeh said the sealing their offices might be connected to EEDC’s notice to begin disconnecting indebted customers starting Tuesday.
“Enugu State Government happens to be one of the indebted customers, with over N1bn owed to EEDC.
“It is important to state that the majority of the state government’s facilities are metered. So, it is not a case of estimated billing. EEDC has about N180bn in debts and has concluded plans to commence disconnection of indebted customers,” he explained.
When contacted, the Chairman of ECTDA, Uche Anyanwu, declined to comment on the incident.