The Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) has pledged to combat the menace of vandalism and equipment theft, vowing offenders will face the full wrath of the law.
This came on the back of the apprehension and arraignment of Auta Simon for stealing armoured cables on Creek Road, Apapa, Lagos.
Also, one JimohYesuwas arraigned before the Magistrate Court 2 in Badagry following his arrest while attempting to move a stolen aluminium conductor in the Akpator community around Seme Border in Badagry, Lagos State.
The General Manager, Corporate Communications of EKEDC, Babatunde Lasaki, in a statement, noted that vandalism and theft of electricity equipment are the leading causes of power outages and the inability to supply uninterrupted power to customers.
He said Auta, whose accomplice identified as Samson Zakari currently at large, was charged with vandalism and stealing, and pleaded guilty to the charges. He was sentenced to two years imprisonment at the Apapa Magistrate Court.
However, the suspect at large is still being wanted by the Police.
Lasaki said: “While we commit huge sums of money to purchase standard equipment to improve our infrastructure and provide our customers with stable, reliable and constant electricity, some unscrupulous members of the society go about digging out our cables, removing vital parts of transformers and other equipment for their self-gains, causing outages in our franchise areas.
“This act makes us spend huge amounts replacing the stolen equipment instead of dedicating that to expanding our network and meeting more demands,” he said.
