Residents, businesses count losses as KEDCO workers suspend 2-day strike

Residents of Kano as well as small and medium business owners in the state are counting their losses following the strike embarked upon by employees of the Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO). The strike embarked upon by the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) and Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies (SSAEAC), was […]

Residents of Kano as well as small and medium business owners in the state are counting their losses following the strike embarked upon by employees of the Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO).

The strike embarked upon by the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) and Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies (SSAEAC), was suspended on Friday after a 48-hour industrial action over issues of conditions of service and welfare of the workers.

A shop owner Sadisu Muhammad said the blackout that followed the shutdown of KEDCO office forced him to buy an ice block to preserve his soft drinks, particularly his Kunun Aya drink which must be refrigerated.

“Thankfully, they have suspended the strike now but it has actually plunged us into darkness which affected our business negatively. Regular supply has since been restored and business is back to normal,” said the shop owner.

Hamisu Musa who runs a barbing saloon said the strike also affected his business but thanks to his rechargeable Clippers, it did not stop.

Recharging the Clippers, he however said, comes with a cost as he has to go to another place working with a generator to recharge.

Abdul Hadi Imam who runs a business centre in Inuwa Dutse road said he was lucky to have recently bought solar batteries, saying the strike would have run down his business.

“Despite having a solar battery, I still had to rely on public supply of electricity to use my photocopying machine. Therefore, the suspension of the strike is a huge relief for us,” he added.

Christopher Simon, a metal fabricator, said he was buying diesel to power his generator during the strike which added to his running cost for a job that he has already been paid for.

Similarly, KEDCO estimated that the company lost N100 million each day while the strike lasted.

The union had last Wednesday barricaded the company premises, throwing the firm franchise area covering Kano, Jigawa and Katsina states into darkness.

The management of the electricity distribution company, has however succeeded in convincing the unions to suspend the action two days after it commenced to allow it to address some of the issues raised by the workers.

The company feared that if the industrial action was allowed to linger, economic losses could escalate rapidly, compounding the already fragile power situation in the state.

The management of KEDCO described the suspension of the strike as a fallout of productive engagements and concrete resolutions reached with all parties involved.

In a statement issued by Sani Bala Sani, KEDCO’s Head of Corporate Communications, KEDCO said the decision came after extensive deliberations that helped resolve the impasse between management and electricity workers.

KEDCO acknowledged the roles played by key stakeholders in achieving the breakthrough, including the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Future Energies Africa (FEA), the company’s core investor, as well as the Kano State Ministry of Power and Renewable Energy. According to the statement, the interventions of these bodies ensured constructive and conclusive discussions that paved the way for the suspension of the strike.