The Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution (PHED) Plc, has lamented the incessant assault suffered by its staff in the hands of members of the public.
In a statement issued and signed by the Head, Corporate Communications, John Anonyai, warned that persons or communities who assault staff of PHED will suffer the consequences stipulated by the organisation”s in-house rules and be prosecuted for justice.
According to the statement, this is in reaction to a recent assault that caused severe injuries of a staff of the company Mr Itoro Essienobom in Uyo.
The incident, it stated, occurred at Oron on Wednesday, December 15, 2021, where two fierce looking men indebted to PHED attacked the lines worker simply because he advised them to make payment to avert possible disconnection.
Meanwhile, a magistrate court in the Eket Chief Magisterial District at Eket in Akwa Ibom state has sentenced two vandals of facilities of the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution (PHED) Plc to four years imprisonment each.
The convicts will serve their terms at the Nigerian Correctional Services, Eket.
The convicts Aniekan Samuel Sampson and Akaninyene Samuel had on November 3, 2021 vandalised and stolen cables identified to be XLPE Cables from the UDOFA QIC Sub-station of the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution (PHED) Plc. The culprits were sentenced for offences punishable under section 556(1)(1) of the criminal code cap. 38 Vol. 2 Laws of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria 2000.
A statement by the company stated that the judgement comes as a relief for PHED in the pursuit of justice over the years.
” It is noteworthy to state that PHED has suffered huge loses, where over 210 Power Transformers of various sizes and other electrical accessories have been vandalized by criminals over the years”.
“It would be recalled that the MD/CEO of PHED, Dr Henry Ajagbawa, while speaking to newsmen on the sidelines at a media parley recently, prayed Governments at all levels to establish focused and consolidated legislation to help expedite judicial processes involving criminals and criminal activities in the energy sector with a view to ensuring that justice is delivered to offenders expeditiously”.
“The MD/CEO welcomed the judgement and gave kudos to the judiciary, noting that this is the beginning of a new dawn in our fight for justice against business and economic sabotage in the energy sector. He affirmed his belief that this judgement is the antidote needed to combat the existential threat of vandalism and energy theft in the country. Continuing, he harped on the point that any individual or group of persons involved in vandalism or energy theft will not be spared”.
