Cable theft throws Ogun community into blackout

The residents of Magboro Community, Ogun State, have experienced a blackout because of the theft of electrical cables used for power transmission in the area.

PUNCH Metro gathered that the cables were stolen on August 18, 2024.

A month after, the perpetrators of the act are yet to be apprehended with four streets affected by the development while the stolen cables have yet to be replaced.

The Chairman, Community Development Association, Adeyemo Mudashir, told PUNCH Metro on Wednesday that the incident had occurred in 2011.

He said, “It is a long story. Around 2011, this same incident happened and I think around 2022, it happened again. This is the third time this has happened.”

He also said the community had borne the cost of replacing and fixing the stolen cables, lamenting, “The government didn’t respond to our pleas. We are using our money to replace the stolen cables. Now, we used about N250,000 to buy new cables to attach to the transformer.”

He expressed sadness that the identities of those perpetrating the act had yet to come to light, noting that they were “experts.”

He said, “We don’t know the particular people stealing the cables but we suspect that this was done by an experienced person. I also suspect those cart pushers claiming to transport waste items out of the street. The same thing happening to us here is happening to the Mowe residents.”

When asked if the matter had been reported to the police, Mudashir said, “Yes. We reported to the power company via letters and they told us they reported to the Ibafo Police Station.”

Mudashir also said the perpetrators knew that there would not be a power supply because the supply in the area was scheduled, which aided their action.

He said, “We appeal for stable light because the cables were stolen because the perpetrators knew there would not be light that day.”

The spokesperson for the association, Sulaimon Opeyemi, told PUNCH Metro that if the power supply was constant, there would be no chance for anyone to steal the cables.

He said, “I feel if there was no need for sharing light in Magboro, our cables wouldn’t have been stolen. It was because the perpetrators knew that at that particular time, there wouldn’t be light. I appeal to the power company officials to give us stable light. If there was electricity, those thieves wouldn’t have got close to the pole.

Reacting in a telephone conversation on Wednesday, the spokesperson for the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company, Busolami Tunwase, said communities must join hands with DISCOs to curb vandalism of infrastructure.

She stressed that lack of funds hampered the IBEDC from attending to the issue at the moment but that it would be sorted out soon.

“Tackling vandalism is a joint effort from us and the communities. And that is why we appeal to customers to watch their installations and immediately report suspected cases of vandalism.

“We should provide such (cables), but because of the paucity of funds,  we may not be able to do so immediately,” she said.