The Nigeria Airforce Pledge Syenegy With Kaduna
Electric
By Mohammed Abba
The Commandant, the Nigeria Air Force 207 QRG BASE,
Gusau, Air Cdre SS Lazarette has called for synergy between Kaduna Electric and
the Nigerian Airforce in ongoing fight against bandits and other criminal
elements in Zamfara State who are making life unbearable innocent citizens.
The Commandant stated this when he paid a courtesy
visit to the Management of Kaduna Electric, Zamfara Area office in Gusau
earlier in the week.
While stressing the importance of electricity supply
to military formations, the Commandant appealed to Kaduna Electric to provide
his command with adequate supply which he said will help them to a very large
extent in carrying out their responsibilities diligently.
"We are here on a familiarization visit which
we believe will enable us build cordial relationship between these two
organizations. Security is the backbone
of every development, hence, the need for Kaduna Electric to partner with this
command in order to succeed in its mandate of providing uninterrupted power
supply” He stated.
He noted that his command is among the first
military and paramilitary establishments that have concerns for paying
electricity promptly. He promised that all electricity bills will be settled
most especially the outstanding debt.
In his response, the Area Manager of Zamfara Area
Office, Engr Saidu Dogara thanked the Commandant for his visit and assured him
of the Company’s readiness to support and partner with the Airforce in
everything that will propel development of the state.
On the issue of power supply to the QRG BASE, he
said the Company will do everything possible to give adequate supply to the
Command so as to enable them carry out their duties effectively while pleading
with the Nigerian Airforce to reciprocate the gesture by living up to their
obligation.
He maintained that, Kaduna Electric will continue to
maintain cordial relationship with the Command to ensure enduring peace and
security in the State.
Covid-19
Lockdown: How Kaduna Electric Facilitates Citizens’ Wellbeing
By Umar Sani
As countries around the
world put in place measures to cope with the Covid 19 pandemic, most of us are
spending more time in our homes through social distancing. Millions of people
are now confined to their homes, resorting to “Teleworking or Telecommuting” to
do their jobs, visiting e-commerce sites to do their shopping, some are engaged
in Tweeting, Telegramming, Instagram, gaming, Zooming & streaming of videos
for entertainment. Internet data & telephony services made the stay-at-home
very interesting & lively. During the lockdown, there wasn’t any difference
between weekdays & weekends; what was different was the improvement in
availability of constant & reliable electricity, which unshackles the
endless possibilities in us.
In the recent past, there has never been a
time that the importance of electricity in our homes was ever appreciated for
keeping us connected to the outside world more than during the lockdown.
Electricity has enabled us to work from home & it is facilitating learning
from home for students who cannot go to school due to the lockdown. It is the
same electricity that also powers our smartphones, power banks, tv sets,
laptops, fridges, air conditioning system, water heaters, fans, washing
machines, boreholes, light bulbs etc. To put it succinctly, any mention of
‘essential services’ without reference to electricity is incomplete.
In many countries,
electricity is critical for operating the ventilators & other medical
equipment’s in the hospitals treating the soaring numbers of sick people. In
such an unsettling & rapidly evolving situation, electricity also ensures
the timely communication of important information between government &
citizens, and between doctors & patients, so also between service providers
& their end-users. Ironically, electricity is not something most people
think about in their day to day lives- unless, of course, it stops working.
Yet, it is often a thankless job, but ‘reliable energy’ is one of the most
important services there is, -often needed so that other heroes can perform
their roles.
Upon the manifestation
of the Covid-19 catastrophe, Kaduna Electric has been reassuring customers that
it will work tirelessly to keep communities powered. Having understood the pivotal
role electricity is playing in our lives, Kaduna Electric as a company have
since swung into action, targeted at easing the lockdown by guaranteeing
‘reliable energy’ supply. Surprisingly, uninterrupted 24 hour supply became
possible to customers of Kaduna Electric during the lockdown & what that
implies is that, for every 24 hours uninterrupted supply, there is a colony of
Kaduna Electric staff on duty & on standby, manning the operations,
dispatching information, receiving & disseminating intelligence, round the clock, despite the scary story of
the pandemic that just arrived.
In recognition of the
strategic role electricity employees are playing in nation building & in
curbing the coronavirus pandemic, the Chairman Board of Directors Kaduna Electric,
Alhaji Yusuf Hamisu Abubakar went round on a tour on the 2nd of
April to some of the company’s injection sub-station & service Centre’s in
Kaduna. During his tour, he had a
first-hand/direct interaction with the staff he met on duty & he really
appreciated & encouraged them for their resilience, dedication & hard
work, most especially during the Covid lockdown. The chairman equally sought
the opinion of staff on how best the company can intervene and make their job
interestingly convenient. This physical tour by no less a mortal but the
Chairman, though in compliance to the physical distance order, was indeed a
morale booster to the staffers. It restored hope & confidence.
Similarly, the Managing
Director/CEO of Kaduna Electric, Engr Garba Haruna also understands that
communication is not & should not always be about customers; staff too
matters. For is often said that taking time to thank others is vital to dampen
loneliness, amp up social connections & generate generosity. Be that as it
may, the MD being a man of few words reserved his heat only to voice it out on
“Workers Day” (1/05/2020). The MD was indeed with his workers on workers day.
He hailed not just Kaduna Electric workers but the entire Nigerian workers. The
MD who assured staff that their hard work & dedication will be rewarded by
the company, went further to state that personal protective equipment’s &
palliatives will also be given to all staff in addition to allowance that shall
be given to those staff who have been working during the lockdown.
As if that is not
enough & in an effort to support the vulnerable ones within KE franchise
area, Kaduna Electric bought food items worth over N30m & donated it to
Kaduna, Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara state governments for onward distribution to
the poor and vulnerable members of the societyS. If this ‘social facilitation’ at a time of
social distancing is not worth applause, then, I wonder what is.
By Asma'u Isiyaku Gwamna
Coping
With The Challenges of Covid-19
By Asma'u Isiyaku Gwamna
Coronavirus (covid-19)
is a scary invisible enemy whose name is now familiar to everyone around the
world.
The first case, as
reported by the World Health Organization (WHO), was on 31st
December, 2019, when the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission, reported a cluster
of cases of pneumonia in Wuhan, China. A novel coronavirus was eventually
identified. At the time, there was no evidence that the virus was readily
spread by humans. Health officials in China said they were monitoring it to
prevent the outbreak from developing into something more severe.
On 11th
January, 2020, China reported the first case of death from the virus o a
61-year-old woman. According to the WHO’s first situation reports, the first
confirmed cases outside mainland China occurred in Japan, South Korea and
Thailand at around 20thof January, 2020. The virus has continued to
ravage the entire world, bringing global economy down to its knees, with almost
every aspect of human life brought to a standstill. Threating even the biggest
and strongest economies as well as the most advanced countries like the United
States, China and Russia. It was later to be declared a global emergency by WHO
on 30th, January, 2020 as the spread continues like a raging inferno
all around the globe.
The first case of the
covid-19 in Nigeria was confirmed on 27th February 2020, an Italian
citizen who works in Nigeria and returned from Milan, Italy to Lagos, Nigeria
on 25th February 2020. The pandemic in its fourth month has brought
about a lot of challenges in Nigeria which has led the president to lockdown
Lagos, Ogun and the FCT for an initial 2 weeks which was later extended.
However, the situation in Kaduna was different as the Kaduna State Government
took strict and more preventive measures to curb the spread of the disease in
the State as well as the country.
Even though we are in a
very trying time, Kaduna Electric, being an essential service, will continue to
operate and distribute electricity in its franchise states.
The Management is been dedicated to following
guidelines and protocols established by the states in which it operates as well
as make sure that staff as well as customers are safe and abide by the rules
provided. Most staff are required to work from home, other department are
provided by PPE’s so as to continue on its mandate of delivering steady
electricity supply to customers across its franchise states. The management has
also donated palliatives to aid the state in fighting the virus and keeping
people safe during this trying time.
The management wish to
tell its staff and customers to stay safe, follow the guidelines issues by
states ministries of health and Federal Ministry of Health and if you feel
unwell with symptoms like fever, cough and difficulty in breathing, please call
NCDC toll free number which is available day and night, for guidance-
0800-970000-10. Do not engage in self- medication. Stay safe.
