The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has released an app that will allow citizens to report power outages and interruptions across the country.
NERC chairperson Sanusi Garba said during the app’s debut in Abuja on Monday that the move is in keeping with the commission’s goal to improve service delivery to customers.
“I think a lot of you can recall that we recently launched a new consumer protection regulation that provides timelines within which public utilities, and especially distribution companies (DisCos), are required to resolve complaints by customers,” Garba said.
“So, this particular app that we have launched today is supposed to assist the commission in monitoring that DisCos are actually complying with the standards set out in that regulation.”
Garba stated that the software was originally intended to test the quality of the power source.
He went on to say that the NERC felt that having live data and successfully monitoring DisCos was preferable.
The NERC chairperson encouraged citizens to file concerns through the app, telling them that timely responses will boost their trust in the commission and DisCos.
“We decided to start this launch with Abuja. There’ll be a national rollout for all distribution companies,” he said.
“Such a massive application would require some test run and so on.
“So, AEDC is like a guinea pig for the app but we’ll quickly expedite the rollout to other distribution companies but obviously the DisCos where we are having the highest level of complaints will be ranked higher in terms of the rollout.”
The chairperson of the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC), Christopher Ezeafulukwe, praised the commission for the app’s introduction, calling it a product of partnership that will provide a win-win situation for all Nigerians.
“I dare say feedback from our customers is actually for the distribution company, what I would call our feedstock,” the AEDC chair said.
“It is the raw material that we need to be able to deliver the services that we actually contract to provide.
“One big takeaway is that the app we’re about to launch is a product of collaboration between the commission, the distribution company, and eventually the customers.
“It then implies that it’s going to be a win-win for all of us.
“On the part of the regulator, it’s already been said that it will be greater oversight and not just oversight for oversight sake but to ensure that value is not just being created but being sustained and protected.
“On the part of the distribution company, this will actually help catalyse more data-based decisions.”
