Residents of Rano town, the headquarters of Rano Emirate Council in Kano State, have expressed frustration over a two-year power outage that has disconnected the community from the national grid, according to a report by Premium Times.
They attribute the prolonged blackout to the authorities’ failure to address rampant theft and vandalism of power infrastructure.
The blackout has severely affected local businesses and economic activities, widening development gaps between Rano and other emirate councils in the state. Despite complaints to local and state officials, residents say no significant action has been taken to restore electricity.
Yakubu Abdullahi, a welder since 2002, described the situation as devastating for his livelihood. “It is double suffering for us welders in the town because the cost of diesel is very high. Some of us are using inverters and generators as alternative power sources. Even when we had normal electricity, the profit margin was small. Now, you can imagine what we are going through,” he said.
He added that the welders’ union in the town has about 50 members, many of whom are struggling to sustain their livelihoods. “We need a constant power supply to sustain our livelihoods, but from the way things are going, I doubt if the government cares about our well-being,” he lamented.
Another resident, Yusuf Bala, questioned why authorities have not considered connecting Rano to the electricity infrastructure in neighboring Bunkure Local Government Area, only about four kilometers away. “It is disheartening that despite the proximity to Bunkure, we are still suffering in darkness. This has been going on for years, and no one seems to care,” he said.
For artisans like tailors, the blackout has been equally challenging. Anas Muhammad, a tailor, said the power outage has driven many of his colleagues out of business.
“We were paying about N4,000 in electricity bills per shop monthly, but now you have to spend the same amount in a day to buy fuel if you want to continue in the business,” he said. “Some of us with high patronage stay in business to retain our customers, hoping the government will restore power, but it seems like the local officials have been deceiving us.”
A visit to the town revealed extensive damage to power infrastructure, with at least 10 electricity poles vandalized and cables stolen. Residents fear that the theft has worsened the challenges of reconnecting Rano to the national grid.
The state’s Commissioner for Power and Renewable Energy, Dr. Gaddafi Shehu, said his ministry was unaware of the outage, as neither the Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO) nor the residents had officially lodged complaints.
He stated that KEDCO is responsible for reconnecting the town and replacing vandalized infrastructure, while the ministry only provides oversight.
“The ministry cannot act unless KEDCO officially informs us of the issue. They are mandated to handle electricity distribution and infrastructure restoration in the state,” Dr. Shehu said.
Efforts to get a response from KEDCO were unsuccessful, as the company’s spokesperson, Sani Bala, did not reply to inquiries about the situation.
