By Elohor Foghola/ Elizabeth Oduje
The Executive Director of Projects (EDP), Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC), Olorogun Dr Ebenezer Okorodudu today formally received a comprehensive technical report from the committee assigned to investigate and propose solutions for the restoration of electricity in eight Olomu communities, Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State that has plague the communities for more than 15years.
Olorogun Dr Okorodudu expressed satisfaction with the thoroughness of the report and reiterated his commitment to delivering sustainable development to Olomu communities.
He praised the committee for its technical depth, transparency, and community-cantered approach, and assured stakeholders that the recommendations would be thoroughly examined.
Speaking during the presentation, the secretary of Olomu traditional rulers council/ secretary of ughelli South LGA Chief John Ewenede, commended the EDP for the initiative. He also praised the committee’s commitment, stating that the assignment was carried out with diligence and in-depth technical scrutiny.
Engr. Ovie Agbaero the technical consultant of the committee explained that the report consists of two major documents detailing the scope of work, including the required materials such as 150mm good quality cables, 800amp feeder pillars, and labour specifications — all outlined community by community. Prices for each material component were also included to ensure transparency and ease of understanding.
“This is not a simple project. We broke it down community by community, and at the end of each report, we included the estimated cost of materials,” Mr. Agbaero said. “Even a non-engineer can go through it and understand what we did.”
He further noted that the report recommended exclusion of individual metering costs from the main project, as those should be the responsibility of end-users who utilizes the electricity. “It is not government’s duty to provide bulk meters for households — each community must be responsible,” he emphasized.
He also raised issues of underutilization of existing transformers, citing instances where large-capacity units were servicing fewer than 30 houses, and called for a redistribution of such transformers to more densely populated areas.
Security was another central concern in the report.
The secretary lamented the rampant theft of cables, feeder pillars, and other critical electrical components, urging communities to establish local security frameworks to safeguard public assets.
“If there’s no community commitment to security, this project may not succeed,” he warned. “We need each community to set up a strong security outfits to ensure that these electrical installations are protected”
