by Nurat Uthman
The Board of Directors of the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company has relieved Mr Kingsley Achife of his appointment as the company’s Managing Director.
The board refused to renew Achife’s contract, naming Francis Agoha as the Acting Managing Director of the IBEDC effective from May 31.
Achife’s sack was contained in an internal memo dated May 31, a copy of which was sighted by journalists.
“Dear colleagues, the Board of Directors of the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company wishes to inform the staff that it has decided not to renew the contract of the current Managing Director, Engineer Kingsley Achife.
“The Board expresses its deepest gratitude to Engineer Kingsley Achife for his contributions to the company and for laying the foundation for the ongoing turnaround.
“In light of this decision, the Board is pleased to announce the appointment of the most senior executive, Engineer Francis Agoha as the Acting Managing Director of IBEDC. Engineer Francis Agoha will assume leadership responsibilities with immediate effect and will work closely with the Board to ensure a smooth transition,” the memo read in part.
The IBEDC board said it remains committed to delivering reliable electricity services to its customers and stakeholders.
“We are confident that this change in leadership will accelerate our journey towards sustainable growth, improved performance and a successful transition,” the memo from the management added.
Though no reason was given for the board’s decision, it may not be unconnected with complaints about the performances of the Disco among its contemporaries.
In March, the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, summoned, among others, the outgoing managing director of the IBEDC to a crucial meeting.
Adelabu said despite the efforts of the ministry to increase power generation certain distribution companies like the IBEDC were failing to adequately distribute the power supplied, while vandalism of power infrastructure exacerbates the problem in regions such as Abuja, Benin, Port Harcourt, and Ibadan.
On Thursday, Achife led the IBEDC to make a defence hearing against a sanction contained in an order on non-compliance with estimated billing issued by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission in February 2024
At the hearing, Achife stated that he was learning from the defence hearing and that he was against overbilling customers.
However, the Vice Chairman of NERC and chairman of the hearing panel, Musiliu Oseni, stated that NERC only decided to approve IBEDC’s request to hold the hearing, saying the appeal was filed beyond the sixty days allowed for the filing of an appeal against any regulatory judgement.
He mentioned that the combined NERC and IBEDC team will reach a resolution point.
The IBEDC spokesperson, Busolami Tunwase, said a statement would be released later, refusing to give details
