Inside Edo
EDOCSO demands urgent action on power crisis as Ministry struggles to take off
Written By: Emmanuel Ikhenebome
23 Nov 2025 08:11 AM
Benin, Edo – The Edo Civil Society Organisations (EDOCSO) has given the state’s newly created Ministry of Power a stern ultimatum to immediately activate all internal mechanisms and operationalise the Edo State Electricity Regulatory Commission (EDSERC), warning that further delays are intensifying the suffering of millions of residents amid erratic power supply and widespread consumer rights violations.
The strongly worded demand was contained in a communiqué issued on Thursday, 20 November 2025, following a fact-finding visit by EDOCSO’s Power and Energy Committee to the ministry, barely one month after Governor Monday Okpebholo unbundled the former Ministry of Energy and Mining to create a standalone Ministry of Power.
Led by committee chairman Leftist Kelli Eyonse, the delegation met with Project Coordinator Engr. Dauda Suleiman in the absence of Commissioner Usenbo Ehigie.
The interaction revealed several critical developments, such as; the immediate revocation by the Okpebholo administration of all power purchase agreements with Ossiomo Power Plant, the 95-MW independent gas-fired facility that previously supplied government buildings and parts of Benin City under the administration of former Governor Godwin Obaseki.
A full reversion to purchasing electricity exclusively from the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC).
Confirmation that the Edo State Electricity Regulatory Commission (EDSERC), legally established in 2023 to regulate intra-state electricity and protect consumers, remains completely non-functional with no staff, office space, or operational complaint mechanism.
Admission that the distribution of prepaid meters now relies entirely on private partnerships under the Edo Mass Metering Programme, with no clear timeline for a mass rollout.
In the communiqué sighted by DAILY South Nigeria, EDOCSO condemned what it described as the continued discriminatory banding system that guarantees some areas and high-paying neighbourhoods up to 20 hours of daily supply while rural and low-income communities are restricted to as little as 2–4 hours, purely for profit maximisation.
The coalition demanded that the Ministry of Power, under Commissioner Usenbo Ehigie, to immediately, fully constitute EDSERC and commence its operations to serve as an independent regulator protecting consumers from estimated billing and arbitrary disconnections.
Establish a proper consumer complaint desk headed by the Commissioner himself, replacing the current grossly inadequate channel with the statutory regulator.
Aggressively attract new private investors into the liberalised Edo electricity market to break BEDC’s monopoly and put an end to over-estimated billing.
As of Sunday, 23 November 2025, the Ministry of Power had not released any official response to EDOCSO’s visit or communiqué.
Meanwhile, residents in communities such as Ekenwan, Okhokhugbo, and Upper Sokponba Road continue to experience near-total blackouts lasting weeks, while even previously privileged Band A areas in Benin City have reported deteriorating supply following the disconnection of Ossiomo Power.
With the harmattan season setting in and the roar of generators once again dominating the state capital, pressure is mounting on Governor Monday Okpebholo’s administration to demonstrate that the creation of a standalone Ministry of Power is more than cosmetic, and that it represents a genuine commitment to resolving one of the most persistent challenges facing Edo people.
The strongly worded demand was contained in a communiqué issued on Thursday, 20 November 2025, following a fact-finding visit by EDOCSO’s Power and Energy Committee to the ministry, barely one month after Governor Monday Okpebholo unbundled the former Ministry of Energy and Mining to create a standalone Ministry of Power.
Led by committee chairman Leftist Kelli Eyonse, the delegation met with Project Coordinator Engr. Dauda Suleiman in the absence of Commissioner Usenbo Ehigie.
The interaction revealed several critical developments, such as; the immediate revocation by the Okpebholo administration of all power purchase agreements with Ossiomo Power Plant, the 95-MW independent gas-fired facility that previously supplied government buildings and parts of Benin City under the administration of former Governor Godwin Obaseki.
A full reversion to purchasing electricity exclusively from the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC).
Confirmation that the Edo State Electricity Regulatory Commission (EDSERC), legally established in 2023 to regulate intra-state electricity and protect consumers, remains completely non-functional with no staff, office space, or operational complaint mechanism.
Admission that the distribution of prepaid meters now relies entirely on private partnerships under the Edo Mass Metering Programme, with no clear timeline for a mass rollout.
In the communiqué sighted by DAILY South Nigeria, EDOCSO condemned what it described as the continued discriminatory banding system that guarantees some areas and high-paying neighbourhoods up to 20 hours of daily supply while rural and low-income communities are restricted to as little as 2–4 hours, purely for profit maximisation.
The coalition demanded that the Ministry of Power, under Commissioner Usenbo Ehigie, to immediately, fully constitute EDSERC and commence its operations to serve as an independent regulator protecting consumers from estimated billing and arbitrary disconnections.
Establish a proper consumer complaint desk headed by the Commissioner himself, replacing the current grossly inadequate channel with the statutory regulator.
Aggressively attract new private investors into the liberalised Edo electricity market to break BEDC’s monopoly and put an end to over-estimated billing.
As of Sunday, 23 November 2025, the Ministry of Power had not released any official response to EDOCSO’s visit or communiqué.
Meanwhile, residents in communities such as Ekenwan, Okhokhugbo, and Upper Sokponba Road continue to experience near-total blackouts lasting weeks, while even previously privileged Band A areas in Benin City have reported deteriorating supply following the disconnection of Ossiomo Power.
With the harmattan season setting in and the roar of generators once again dominating the state capital, pressure is mounting on Governor Monday Okpebholo’s administration to demonstrate that the creation of a standalone Ministry of Power is more than cosmetic, and that it represents a genuine commitment to resolving one of the most persistent challenges facing Edo people.
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