By: Àkà nnà Olúwaségún
The ABH BLACK-OUT Protest, which has seen students and residents rallying in front of the State Government Secretariat, is in response to the prolonged blackout affecting the ABH community after 82 days of blackout.
Frustrated by the lack of power and the impact on daily life, the demonstrators are demanding immediate solutions. Their peaceful protest has been organized to draw attention to the power outages that have persisted for months.
In response, Fatai Owoseni, the Assistant to the Governor on Security Issues, assured the protesters that their petitions would reach the appropriate authorities.
“This protest is so simple, and the prayers [petitions] will get to the appropriate authority as soon as possible."
"The students have been very organized, and this protest is peaceful. When the government says something, they’ll do it," the assistant affirmed.
Owoseni noted that the blackout issue is primarily under federal jurisdiction but reassured the protesters of the Governor’s determination to act.
“This has to do with the federal government, not the state, but as the Governor doesn’t want anybody to suffer, the petition will get to him, and he will do something about it," Owoseni said.
Meanwhile, Adewole Solomon, Head of Housing under the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, addressed the crowd during the ongoing protest and acknowledged the frustration of the residents. "I promise you one thing, but the solution will not be now. However, immediately I get back to the office, I will call the headquarters. In respect to what you have told me, I promise there will be light before Friday," Solomon said.
Solomon further committed to ensuring the stability of power supply and vowed to follow up with headquarters regarding the situation." If I can't do it, I wouldn't have said it," he affirmed to the SU executives.
