Mustapha Yekeen, a man, has voiced his dislike of the disconnection notice sent by Ikeja Electric, an energy distribution firm, after he was presented with an outstanding payment of N1,340,729.51 in the Somolu region of Lagos State on November 8.
The printing press operator Mustapha was shocked to learn that there was unpaid debt on an account with his name on the customer details.
He stated that it’s likely that his name appeared on the accounts of two distinct clients; yet, Ikeja Electric representatives have ordered that the huge amount owed on his account be paid.
Mustapha informed our reporter that he rented a store in Somolu in 2016 and signed up for Ikeja Electric’s energy service. He began using postpaid service in 2016 and switched to prepaid in 2018 after paying off all of his obligations.
“I rented a shop in 2016, and when I looked at the building’s previous electricity bill, I discovered there were unpaid bills on the meter,” he stated. I therefore made the decision to connect electricity independently of other stores and open a postpaid account.
“I installed a prepaid meter in 2018, and my previous debt was transferred to it. I paid the debt off because they spread it out over 20 months, which made it easier to manage.”
He claimed that recently, representatives from Ikeja Electric visited his workplace one after the other and told him that there was an unpaid electrical bill with his name on it.
He asked the officials “if a customer can have two accounts like that of a bank,” but they did not have an answer for him. Instead, they offered him the chance to pay 50% of the cost, which was more than N 1.3 million.
When I went to the Ikeja Electric Debt Management Office at Idi-Iroko to file a complaint, I showed them all of my electricity bills for both the postpaid and prepaid accounts. However, because that account is in my name, one of their supervisors insisted that I pay at least 50% of the debt.
“On Wednesday, a co-tenant delivered another notice of disconnection that Ikeja Electric officials had given him, together with an outstanding payment of N1,340,739.51 that bore my name. He claimed that they had made threats to visit our store and quickly cut off the building’s electricity. Mustapha continued, “I know the account has been closed, but I’m confused as to why my name appears there.
Concerned by the absurd price, Mustapha filed a petition against Ikeja Electric on November 17. However, he has not heard anything from the company since, which has troubled him.
Ikeja Electric’s spokesperson, Kingsley Okotie, responded to a message sent to him by phone that the problem is operational in nature and may be resolved through operational procedures.
“It’s an accusation, and we need to look into it, but if it’s a legitimate debt, he has to pay it. Instead of relying solely on the media, he ought to have filed a formal complaint and followed the process. So that we can get to work on it, let him send me a copy of the petition along with all of his contact information, Okotie said.
