DAILY POST gathered that the two men, Francis Ezeugwu and his accomplice, whose identity could not be established as at press time were short-circuited on top of EEDC pole at Okpunnoegbu Ekulu Nnewi and Agulu town.
Meanwhile, a young man of about 25 years of age is currently hospitalized in Anambra State for burns he sustained while attempting to vandalize the EEDC’s 2.5 MVA transformer, which serves customers within Nnewi town.
EEDC’s Public Affairs Manager, Mr Eugene Aniowo, who made the disclosure to reporters in Enugu on Sunday, said the incidents have been reported to the Police, even as he lamented incessant vandalism of EEDc’s installations in various parts of South east.
Recalling that a High Court in Abakaliki recently convicted a young man for vandalizing property of the Company, he said that about thirty transformers had been vandalized in the last six months at Nnewi.
Narrating the present incidents, Aniowo said that Ezeugwu used iron ladder to carry out his nefarious act, adding that he was electrocuted during the process, while the mangled body of the of the Agulu episode victim, “was found inside EEDC substation while attempting to vandalize the transformer components. His tools were also found around his dead body”.
Aniowo said: “The oil in the transformers was drained and their cable installations were stolen, putting thousands of customers out of service.
“EEDC condemns this spate of vandalism and will continue to work with the Nigerian Police and other security agents, Presidents-General of Town Unions and the general public in the war against vandalism.
“EEDC regrets the spate of vandalism on her network and other installations. This had led to loss of lives and untold hardship on our customers, who suffer outages as a result. EEDC has been campaigning through radio, television and public meetings for perpetrators of such acts to desist from their ways. We have also arrested many vandals and handed them over to the authorities.
“It is unfortunate that despite the campaigns and arrests, some people still carry out such activities at the risk of their lives and interrupt the enjoyment of electricity by our customers.
“EEDC requests that the general public be vigilant and not allow its network and installations to be vandalized within their communities.
“EEDC customers should see electricity installations around them as theirs and ought to protect them as such. They should pay their bills as at when due and report any faults to our nearest office. Under no circumstances should any customer engage a non-EEDC employee to work on our network or installations. Such acts put the lives of the untrained persons at risk.”
Aniowo said the company had lost several millions of naira in revenue by the activities of vandals in the last couple of months, stressing that the issue was on the rise in the five southeast states.
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