Edo Governor Joins Street Protest Over Power Outage

Residents of Benin, Edo State, on Monday took to the streets in protest against prolonged power outages and the billing practices of the Benin Electricity Distribution Company.

The demonstrators converged on Ring Road in central Benin City before marching through major streets, displaying placards with inscriptions such as “We say no to BEDC oppression,” “No light, no bill,” and “Edo people say no to bulk billing.”

Governor Monday Okpebholo joined the protesters in solidarity as they voiced frustration over recurring blackouts, estimated billing, and the rising cost of prepaid meters.

Speaking for the group, Ogbidi Emmanuel said residents had been forced to protest what he described as exploitative practices by the electricity distributor.

“We pay for light, and they give us darkness,” he lamented, questioning the transparency of the company’s free meter distribution initiative.

He called on BEDC to make public the list of beneficiaries, noting that prepaid meters were reportedly being sold for between N150,000 and N400,000.

Addressing the crowd, the governor appealed for calm and assured residents that the government would engage relevant stakeholders to address the concerns.

“We need to engage them to see how we can attract more investors into electricity distribution,” he said.

“Once that is done, we will all be more assured of stable power. Let us remain calm and allow the engagement to take place,” the governor appealed.

Okpebholo noted that BEDC is privately owned and not directly controlled by the state government, but assured that concrete steps would be taken to address residents’ concerns.

He announced a stakeholders’ meeting for Tuesday and invited the protesters to nominate five representatives to participate.

“I was just passing by and saw people gathered here at Ring Road. I stopped to find out what the issue was, and they said you were protesting.

“I said, yes, we are all youths, and I have come to join you. The only way we can fight this is to bring new investors into the business of distribution.

“We will break the monopoly. We want to operate like the telecom sector, where you have alternatives. Bringing in more investors will give our people options,” he said.

The protest remained peaceful throughout, with security personnel maintaining order as demonstrators dispersed after the governor’s address.

As of press time, BEDC had not issued an official response to the allegations.