By Atoyebi Nike
Residents of Umuahia, Abia State, on Tuesday staged a peaceful protest against what they described as harsh and unjustifiable electricity bills imposed by the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC).
Operating under the banner of Concerned Umuahia Residents, the protesters marched from the EEDC office to the Abia State Government House, carrying placards that read: “We cannot pay ₦50,000 bill,” “Return electricity bill to status quo,” and “Electricity bill is now minimum wage.”
Group leader Chukwuemeka Ozugbo said most households previously paid around ₦10,000 monthly but now receive bills between ₦50,000 and ₦70,000 without improved power supply. He described the hike as “outrageous and unfair,” questioning how civil servants earning modest salaries could meet such costs.
Civil servant Nnamdi Okenwa, who uses prepaid metering, lamented that his monthly power expenses had jumped from ₦3,000 to as high as ₦17,000, despite irregular supply.
Responding on behalf of Governor Alex Otti, the Commissioner for Power and Public Utilities, Ikechukwu Monday, assured residents that their complaints would be addressed through structured engagement. He explained that the tariff increase from ₦53 to ₦200 per kilowatt-hour followed the upgrade of their feeder to Band A by EEDC and urged residents to file formal complaints to facilitate government action.
He added that over 60,000 meters had been deployed across the state as part of efforts to ensure fair billing and announced that Abia would assume full electricity regulatory control by December 2025, following the signing of the Abia State Electricity Law in March.
Head of Commercial, EEDC Abia, Festus Iwuala, attributed the tariff hike to regulatory approval by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, saying the change was not arbitrary. He urged residents to understand the national tariff structure and assured them of adherence to approved policies.
