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By Demola Akinyemi, Ilorin

Well over 10, 000 residents of the Okoerin community in the Ilorin West local government area of Kwara state have solicited assistance from the Kwara State government for the repair of two transformers vandalised by unknown persons.

Consequent to the damage done to the transformers, the Okoerin community has been thrown into blackout since Jan. 24, 2022, to date.

Vanguard reliably gathered that there have series of meetings among the residents on how to solve the problem which had crippled the socio-economic activities of the residents but haven’t yielded any result till date.

An Editor with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Alh Abdulfatah Beki who is also a resident of the community expressed what he described as pains and agonies he and his family have been going through since the community has been thrown into the darkness since January.

Alh Beki said,”As a journalist life hasn’t been easy for me and indeed my family at all.I used to fuel my generator, but I can’t afford that again since the fuel crisis started. So,I used to pack rechargeable lamps to the office for charging and return them home for use in the evening.

“I have replaced them several times too, due to one issue or the other with the lamps. Its as if we are living in the darkness. Many families who couldn’t go through the stress have relocated. There is no viable alternative to government power, our amiable Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq should please come to our aid.”

An elder in the Okoerin community and Chairman of the defunct llorin local government area, Alhaji Oba Adebayo also appealed to Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRasaq to rescue the community from the darkness.

Adebayo said some donations and little amount contributed are not sufficient to carry out the repair work on the two transformers.

Speaking in a similar manner, the Chairman of Mustapha Sesan street community, Alhaji Abdullahi lbrahim said the damage done to the two transformers is causing discomfort to the residents.

Vanguard gathered that some of the residents of the area who are tenants and needed electricity for their daily job have relocated from the community as a result of the problem.

The Community forwarded a letter to Gov AbdilRahman AbdulRazaq and copied the member representing the llorin central constituency at the state House of Assembly, Alhaji Abubakar Olawoyim-Magaji on the issue, but nothing concrete has been heard about the letter till now.

Although some officials from the state Ministry of Energy had inspected the vandalised transformers, no repair has been carried out on the damaged transformers till now.

Vanguard News Nigeria