Businesses, Services paralysed due to blackout in Kaduna

Businesses and public services have been paralysed due to prolonged blackout in Kaduna metropolis, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

Kaduna and its environs have experienced many days of darkness due to industrial action embarked by electricity workers in the state.

The National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) on Monday began an indefinite strike to protest alleged mass sack of workers by the company.

The power outage paralysed businesses and public services resulting in economic loss and exposed residents to unbearable life conditions.

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Some of the business owners who spoke with NAN, said the blackout negatively affected their trades and exposed them to losses.

Loveth Mathias, a fashion designer, said that she could not run her business as it relied solely on electricity to operate.

Mathias said the trade was grounded as she could not afford exorbitant petrol prices to run her industrial sewing machine.

I’m not attending to customers because I don’t have money to buy fuel to run my power generator and work.

“It is good for the government and the parties involved to find a lasting solution to the problem to ensure steady power supply,” she said.

A printer, Aminu Garkuwar said that he was not making good sales due to the blackout in the past three days.

Garkuwa said that he had improvised fuel utilisation plans to facilitate smooth running of his businesses.

Also, Racheal Raymond, a saloon operator, said that she was not making good sales due to the power outage.

Raymond said the situation had forced her out of business, and expressed the hope that the light would be restored soon.

“My shop is under key and lock, I’ll open for business when the light is back,” she said.

Reacting to the blackout in Kaduna, the Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO), dismissed as “misleading” alleged mass sack of workers in the company.

Abdullahi Abdulazeez, Head Corporate Affairs, KEDCO, said there were no plans by the company to sack its employees.

“Contrary to claims by labour unions that 900 staff were affected, the company confirms that ‘services no longer required’ letters were issued only to Independent System Operator (ISO) employees, an arm of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN),” he said.

He said that the measure was necessitated by the operational and financial challenges affecting its ability to meet market and operational obligations.

He assured that the company was committed to resolve the labour dispute and restore power supply to its customers.