By Bimbola Oyesola and Adewale Sanyaolu

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ELECTRICITY supply to con­sumers in Lagos and parts of Ogun State has dropped to an all time low of 0 per cent, fol­lowing the picketing of Ikeja Electricity Distribution offices by the National Union of Elec­tricity Employees (NUEE).
Investigations by Daily Sun across some Business Under­taken within the Ikeja Electric network confirmed the threat earlier issued by NUEE on Monday to shut down the op­erations of Ikeja Electric was being executed.
At the Abule Egba Business Undertaken on Olaniyi Street, the gates to the office were locked while the operational vehicles were parked inside the premises with no workers on ground to attend to customers’ requests. The same scenario played out at the Iju Under­taken office as customers were seen outside the office premis­es with no workers on ground to attend to their complaints as a result of the picketing exer­cise by NUEE officials.
Daily Sun checks revealed that consumers under the Ikeja Electric network in Magodo, Alausa, Allen Avenue, Agege, Mafoluku in Lagos and Aju­won, Akute, Oke Aro, Mato­gun and Alagbole, all in Ogun State, have been without pow­er supply since Sunday.
A source at Ikeja Electric who pleaded not to be named said the situation has further been compounded as a result of the shut down of the switch room at Egbin Power Plant in Ikorodu.
When contacted, the Head, Corporate Communications, Ikeja Electric, Mr. Felix Ofu­lue, said workers of Ikeja Elec­tric have not declared a strike but NUEE members were all out picketing their offices.
‘‘We are discussing with them as a result of the sack of some staff who are equally members of NUEE. Though discussion is still ongoing, we are yet to reach a conclusion because some demands are frivolous.
“A lot of our customers are going through a difficult time, especially those that are ready to offset their bills but cannot do so at this moment as a re­sult of the picketing exercise embarked upon by the union,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, the workers un­der the NUEE and Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies (SSAEAC) arrived the IKEDC as early as 7 am for the picketing.
The two unions had con­demned the mass sack of 400 workers by the management of the company and had demand­ed for their recall, failing which they warned that industrial ac­tion would be taken against the management. The work­ers, singing solidarity songs, disrupted business activities of Ikeja Electric and caused traf­fic gridlock, thereby forcing motorists to seek alternative routes. The General Secretary of NUEE, Joseph Ajaero, at the picketing, said the manage­ment of IKEDC had refused to negotiate the conditions of ser­vice with the union since the privatisation in 2013, which he noted has made the company to subject the workers to anti-labour treatment and arbitrary sack.