DSM MEMBERS AND OTHER ACTIVISTS PROTEST PLANNED HIKE IN ELECTRICITY TARIFF AT THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT
DSM MEMBERS AND OTHER ACTIVISTS PROTEST PLANNED HIKE IN ELECTRICITY TARIFF AT THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT LAGOS
By Chinedu Bosah
Protesters at Federal High Court Lagos against planned increase in electricity tariff, photo DSM
About 20 demonstrators, including members of the Democratic Socialist Movement (DSM) and activists from different communities in Lagos, held a protest action against the planned increase in electricity tariff on Thursday July 9, 2015.
The protest took place at the Federal High Court Ikoyi Lagos where the suit filed by a human rights lawyer, Toluwani Adebiyi, seeking to stop the planned hike in electricity tariff by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and the private electricity Distribution Companies (disco’s) came for hearing.
The protesters came from the Aboru-Akinola, Ago Palace, Ajegunle and Agege areas of Lagos.
Dagga Tolar, member DSM NEC, addressing the protesters and journalists at the protest action, photo DSM
Since May 28, 2015, Mr. Adebiyi has secured a court injunction through an ex-parte motion which stopped the NERC and DISCOs from going ahead to hike electricity tariff which had been planned to take effect from June 1 2015. With this injunction, which has been reaffirmed twice at the subsequent court sittings on June 11 and July 9, the NERC cannot hike electricity tariff until the substantive suit is decided.
The matter has been further adjourned to July 21. Members of DSM and other activists have planned to return to the court premises with the protest action at the next adjourned date.
The members of the DSM have joined other activists in the campaigns against exploitation and poor service by the private electricity firms since the struggles first broke out in many communities in Lagos.
OUR DEMANDS:
- An end to outrageous estimated billing
- DISCOs must allocate pre-paid meters to all consumers that need them
- Cancellation of N750 fixed charge
- For affordable uninterrupted power supply
- Prompt repair of all faulty power facilities at no cost to the consumers
- An end to casualization in the power sector and improvement in the pay and conditions of electricity workers
- Renationalisation of the power sector and massive investment under democratic control and management of workers and consumers.