The South West Zone of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria has appealed to the Oyo State Government and Transmission Company of Nigeria, an agency of the Federal Government, to resolve the Land Use Charge crisis between them, saying it is affecting its members.
The Chairman of MAN in the zone, Lanre Popoola, laid the complaint to the News Agency of Nigeria on Monday.
Popoola said the power outage in the last four days, occasioned by the LUC crisis, had left many manufacturing industries inoperative.
NAN reports that Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company had on Sunday issued a statement notifying its customers of the power outage due to the sealing off of the Ayede sub-station of TCN over non-payment of LUC.
The communities affected by the development, according to IBEDC, include: Oloruntumo, Logudu, LEO Community, Owode Estate, Orisunbare area, Oladele Estate, Osembele, Omi Adio, Orile-llugun, Ido, Alako, Ilaju, Eruwa, Lanlate, Igboora, Idere, Ayete, Tapa and Igangan.
Podo, Boluwaji, Odo-Ona Elewe, Ayegun Oleyo, Challenge, Ijebu-Ode Road, Toll Gate, New Garage, Molete and Idi-Ayunre, while Podo, Soka, Boluwaji, Best Oil, Black Horse and Aramed feeders are also impacted.
Popoola said that the association had reached out to the state government through the Commissioner for Land on the issue.
“The commissioner informed us that the state government had asked TCN to make a commitment on how to ensure the payment of the charge,” he said.
The MAN chairman decried the dilly-dallying approach between the state government and TCN, adding that nothing had yet to be done and that all the affected companies were out of electricity supply, with no end in sight.
Popoola said: “We as manufacturers are now pleading as our people have been running on generating sets.
“How long can we go before the companies start to shut down?
“I can’t say.
“We are begging TCN to help us out on this issue.”
Also Read:
- Kenn Ayere’s Lifestyle Value Mall provides job opportunities for over 100 youths in Benin
- 2025 AFCON Qualifiers: Osimhen, Lookman score as Nigeria beat Benin Republic
- Buratai mourns Yar’Adua’s mother
- Why we are against using INEC officials from Imo, Kogi for Edo polls – Ighodalo
- FG implementing critical initiatives to train, equip police personnel – Tinubu
Popoola said that he had met with the Managing Director of IBEDC and that efforts had also been made to discuss with TCN.
“All they told us was that they were waiting for a response from their headquarters in Abuja, but up till now, we have not gotten any genuine response,” he said.
When NAN visited the TCN sub-station at Ayede in Ibadan, the gate was under lock and key, with the “Seal” sign conspicuously hung on it.