After about 13 years of power outage in the agrarian community of Ekuku-Agbor in Ika South Local Government Area, the people had cause to celebrate on Saturday, 10 May, as public power supply was finally restored to the area.
Residents of the community who could not hide their joy over the new development were seen jubilating and pouring encomium on the Delta State Governor, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori and Ika South Local Government, Chairman, Engr. Jerry Ehiwarior, who, they chorused, were the forces behind the successful restoration of electricity to the community.
As soon as various homes and business places were lit up, the entire community was thrown into ecstasy.
Men, women, children and the elderly were seen dancing and thanking God for using one of their illustrious sons, Engr. Ehiwarior, to initiate the process which had now brought relief to the people, while serving as Commissioner for Power and Energy.
They said the prolonged blackout became a serious cause for concern to the community after their numerous earlier appeals yielded no result. It was, therefore, quite gratifying when they got assurance from then Commissioner for Power, Engr. Ehiwarior, that the state government had approved work on the step-down that serves Ekuku-Agbor, Agbor-Alidinma, Obi-Agbor, Obi-Iduhor in Ika South Local Government Area, and Egbudu-Akan in Aniocha South Local Government Area.
Those who spoke to journalists said they were overjoyed as a new lease of life had been given to the community.
They noted that many years of being without public power supply had had profound negative effects on the social and economic life of residents of affected communities.
According to Mr. Simon Okocha, President-General, Ekuku-Agbor community,
“Our community has been without electricity since 2012. One cannot quantify, in any measure, the pains and level of frustration we experienced. It was so traumatic. We are indeed grateful to God, Gov. Oborevwori and our son, Engr. Ehiwarior, who made it a point of responsibility to ensure the governor gave his nod to the request for the stepdown to be rehabilitated.
“We must commend and appreciate the zeal and commitment put in by Engr. Ehiwarior, even after leaving office as Commissioner, to see that the job was delivered.
A lot was said by detractors to discourage him, but he was unfazed and saw to the completion of the project. Like it is said, ‘all is now history’ as we now have a breath of fresh air in Ekuku-Agbor.”
For Mrs Veronica Onwumeri, ‘this is a very significant development for our people. You cannot imagine the frustration we had to endure for over a decade without electricity to power our homes and boost our businesses. That is why there has been so much jubilation across the different communities affected by the blackout. I thank the governor and the council chairman. They have given us a enough reason to celebrate.
“Our son, Engr. Ehiwarior, has, by this singular action, proven his love for the people of Ekuku-Agbor and the many other benefitting neighbouring communities. I pray that God will continue to guide and sustain him and our dear governor for this amazing gesture. This, indeed, is the best gift we have had for a long time.”
On his part, Mr. Orunwan Chizoke, a meat seller in Ekuku-Agbor, who could not contain his excitement, said there was no better gift from the Delta State Government than what had just happened in the community.
According to him he had suffered unquantifiable losses over the years as a result of his inability to power his freezer to preserve his products. He lauded the governor and immediate past Commissioner for Power, Engr Ehiwarior, for putting smiles to the faces of the people.
The restoration of power after many years of blackout, and the spontaneous eruption of celebration across Ekuku-Agbor and neighbouring communities underscore the importance of sustainable public power supply in the daily lives of the people, and what it means for government to be mindful of the wellbeing of the citizens.
It equally re-echoes the undeniable enduring fact that citizens will always appreciate any genuine effort of government and those in positions of authority to make their lives more meaningful.
