Blackout: Bayelsa residents throng Churches to charge phones

Power outage in Bayelsa State and the high cost of petrol have forced many residents of Yenagoa, the state capital, to throng churches on Sundays in order to charge their phones and power banks.

Daily Trust observed on Sunday that many residents, who might ordinarily not attend service, did so in order to power their devices.

Also, considering the cost of charging phones and other accessories at the ‘pay charge shop’ due to a hike in petrol price, residents considered attending church services would allow them to charge their phones as generators would run during the the service.

Vandals had early August destroyed about 18 transmission towers, affecting 120 TCN transmission facilities in Ahoada which supply power to the state.

• You can only re-contest Ogun Gov’ship in 2035, Akinlade tells Adebutu
• Tinubu Appoints Global Liaison Officer for China-Nigeria Strategic Partnership

Due to the situation, most of the Pentecostal churches in Yenagoa now witnessed high influx of worshippers on Sundays and other weekly activities.

Recently, the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) stated that it would take additional six weeks to complete the reconstruction of its collapsed transmission towers along the Mbiama-Ahoada axis of Rivers State and restore power supply to Bayelsa.

The Director General of the transmission service provider (TSP), a subsidiary of the TCN, Engineer Olugbenga Ajiboye, gave the assurance on Wednesday, when he led a high-powered technical team on a courtesy visit to the state Deputy Governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, in Government House, Yenagoa.

Engineer Ajiboye, who on behalf of the TCN, apologized to the people and the government of Bayelsa for the prolonged power outage and its attendant economic cost, however, pleaded for the assistance of the state government to restore power to Bayelsa.

He explained that the blackout was occasioned by the damage to the TCN power transmission line connecting Bayelsa, noting that about 18 transmission towers were vandalised.

He said, “We are here to plead with the people of Bayelsa State for the outage of power. We are here to also plead for the state’s assistance to restore power to Bayelsa.

“We came to look at what is on the ground, and from what we have seen, it would take at least six weeks to reconstruct the collapsed towers and restore power to the state.”

Engineer Ajiboye lamented that so far in 2024, no fewer than 120 TCN transmission facilities had been vandalised nationwide, and appealed to the state government to provide security for the safeguard of its facilities.