Abuja, Niger, Nasarawa in darkness as AEDC workers protest over ‘unpaid allowances’

The areas serviced by the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) on Monday were thrown into darkness owing to industrial action by the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE).

The federal capital territory (FCT), Kogi, Nasarawa and Kaduna are areas serviced by the AEDC.

The workers claim they have been owed allowances for the past 18 months.

Confirming the industrial action in a statement on Monday, Bode Fadipe, AEDC general manager, said the company is working to resolve the issue with the workers.

“Following the industrial action embarked upon by the National Union of Electricity Employees, power supply to some of our areas of operation, especially those on the 11KV network, may be affected,” Fadipe said.

“We would like to assure all our customers that all hands are on deck to resolve the issues that prompted this action.

“We would also like to apologise to our customers for the inconvenience and disruption.”

Meanwhile, although the NUEE has announced a suspension of the strike, many parts of the federal capital territory (FCT) are still in darkness.

The NUEE suspended the strike after signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the federal government.

The MoU provided that the federal government would ensure that the grievances of the workers are addressed within 21 days.

Goody Jeddy Agba, minister of state for power; Sanusi Garba, chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC); Joe Ajaero, NUEE general secretary, and Godfrey Aba, NUEE FCT chairman, are among those who signed the MoU.