Absolute darkness, as Kaduna Electric removes newly rated ABU from grid
The Kaduna Electric on Thursday yanked off Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria from its grid, throwing the institution into absolute darkness.
This was due to the university’s inability to pay its accrued electricity bills, according to a special bulletin issued on Friday.
Only recently, Times Higher Education ranks ABU Zaria as best university in Nigeria in 2024.
The bulletin revealed that the university has been facing difficulties in footing its monthly electricity bills following increments in tariff earlier in the year.
The university said it settled an outstanding of over a billion naira in January, 2024. It also said it has been spending huge amount of money on diesel to power its generator.
READ ALSO: Times Higher Education ranks ABU Zaria best university in Nigeria
It appealed to the university community to exercises patience as the management is making ‘frantic efforts’ to raise money to settled the bill.
Meanwhile, some members of the university staff have expressed dissatisfaction with what they called Kaduna Electric’s ‘indiscriminate disconnection’, saying they are using meters and are paying for their home electric supplies.
“Right now, we have units, but we can’t use light. Very annoying set up”, some of them told Nigerian Sketch reporter.
A maintainance staff revealed that “The government stopped paying, then they put us in Band A. Then they announced 50% subsidy or discount to all higher institutions and hospitals. Then we heard GENCOs have started disconnection across the country. Then, there has been no light since yesterday. Finally, this came this afternoon.”
