The Jos Electricity Distribution PLC has decried vandalization of its facilities across its four franchise states including Bauchi, Benue, Gombe and Plateau.
Describing the scenario as deliberate sabotage, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Jos DISCO, Engr. Hashim Ibrahim Bakori, disclosed that the company was intensifying more pragmatic measures to safeguard its installations in all her areas of operations.
He called on members of the public to be vigilant, saying security of the business was not a one man business even as he appealed to the people to report all suspicious movements around the facilities to the law enforcement agencies.
He said, “Yes, these facilities belong to us but the various communities are the immediate beneficiaries of our services. It therefore behooves on the communities to protect these facilities”, he said.
Engr. Hashim expressed anger over the recent vandalization of Transformers in Gangare and Bwandang areas of Jos Metro and Bukuru area.
He said some of the vandalized installations included the Gangare relief Distribution Transformer, 11kv Murtala feeder (Jos Metro), where about 8 meters each of red, yellow, blue, and neutral up riser cables were vandalized.
He added that “Bwandang Relief 200kVA Substation, 11kv Bukuru town feeder (Bukuru) Gongola sub-station on Government House 11KV Feeder, Shafa sub-station on Yankari 33Kv Feeder were all vandalized.
Other vandalized installations were 50kv Transformer opposite NITEL office, Bukuru, 500 KVAsub-station on Gwallameji 11KV Feeder in Bauchi, at Fidel Polytechnic Gboko where about four spans of aluminum conductor were vandalized and carted away, 200 KVA sub-station at Keranna, 300KVA sub-station on barrack 11KV Feeder, Ginda village sub-station on 11Kv Lamingo Feeder, Matami, Arawa sub-station on Mallam Inna 11KV Feeder, Gombe, were all vandalized.
According to him, all the cases have been reported and documented at the police stations in the respective areas where the criminalities took place.
The Managing Director however urged customers in the affected areas not to despair as efforts to repair the vandalized transformers have commenced in earnest.