The Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) has confirmed the electrocution of a barbing salon operator in Nsukka while attacking and vandalising electricity installation belonging to the company.
The company identified the deceased as Tochukwu Onah (alias Toshiba), a barber and an indigene of Ede-Oballa Community (the same community where the transformer is located).
Relaying the development to newsmen in Enugu on Sunday, the Head of Corporate Communications, EEDC, Mr Emeka Ezeh, described the incident as very unfortunate, one which had cut the young man’s life short at its prime.
Ezeh said that the lifeless body of the vandal suspect was found within the space of a distribution transformer belonging to the EEDC at the early hours of Saturday, Jan. 14, at Ede-Oballa community, Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State,
He said that it was suspected that the unfortunate vandel was electrocuted while attempting to vandalise the distribution transformer which already had some of its cables severed.
Ezeh recalled the numerous cases of vandalism recorded by the company in 2022, which negatively impacted not just the quality of service to its customers, but also its revenue.
He, therefore, called on the public, especially those who are quick at pointing accusing fingers at employees of the company to also look inwards, as some of the perpetrators of these attacks miyht be residing within the neighborhood or community.
Ezeh recounted an experience sometime in November 2022, after a transformer was vandalised in the same Ede-Oballa community, where their representatives directly accused employees of EEDC of being responsible for the attack, alleging that “they are the ones who understand electricity.”
“As fate would have it, the deceased happens to be one of their own, an indigene of the community whom we were told operated a barbing salon and had never been associated with anything relating to electricity, talk less of being an employee of EEDC,” he said.
According to the company’s spokesman, vandalism has been a big challenge to the company, and there is no way it can deal with it all alone without the support of its stakeholders.
Ezeh appealed to customers to join hands with the company to fish out these few individuals, who live among us, that are making life miserable for the larger public, instead of engaging in unfounded allegations.
He reiterated the company’s position on any of its employees that is found to be involved in such act.
The EEDC spokesman noted that such a person would not only be shown the way out, but would be prosecuted, °as the company has zero tolerance for such criminal act°.
Ezeh also affirmed that in all the arrests that had been made, none of the suspects had been identified as staff of the company, neither had any of the suspects apprehended claim that they were working or colluding with any employee of the company.
°EEDC condoles with the family of the deceased, and hope that this incident serves as deterrent to those engaging in this act of sabotage and wickedness of throwing entire neighbourhood or community into total darkness,” he added.
