BEDC Defends Staff Over Alleged Cable Theft

The Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) yesterday rose in defence of one of its technical staff accused by the traditional ruler of Ugbegun community in Esan Central local government area of cable theft, saying their staff only acted on directive to investigate feeder tripping and rectify the same.

The paramount ruler of Ugbegun community had last week accused BEDC of victimising residents by throwing them into darkness for apprehending and handing over to the police, one its officials caught in the act of vandalising and stealing armoured cables.

Speaking on the development, spokesman of BEDC in Benin, Evelyn Gbewen, said the action of the said staff was only there to weed out climbers posing threat to the feeder but was sadly misconstrued by the community.

She stated, “On Saturday, 2nd September 2023, a dedicated technical staff member of BEDC received a directive from the regional head technical, instructing him to investigate the continuous feeder tripping, a task he was diligently carrying out on the day in question.

“His efforts led him to discover climbers tampering with the feeder, posing a significant safety hazard. The BEDC staff promptly reported this fault to the regional head and began the process of removing the climbers to prevent further damage, prioritising the safety of the community.

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“Regrettably, some members of Ugbegun community misunderstood his action, as he was there to weed off the climbers touching the feeders.

“He left the Dss and returned to the transmission station upon the completion of the route patrol. Surprisingly, some of the community members brought in the police to arrest the said staff on the grounds that cables were vandalised from the transformer in the early hours of Sunday 3rd Sept, a day after they saw him weeding off climbers tripping the feeder.

“We remain steadfast in our commitment to resolving this situation and ensuring justice prevails. We reiterate our willingness to collaborate with Ugbegun community to restore power to the dormant transformer.”