The management of Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) on Wednesday donated food items worth N10 million to the Oyo State Government as part of its contribution toward mitigating the effects of the COVID-19 in the state.
IBEDC also donated N5 million to the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, to help support the health institution in the fight against the pandemic.
The Chief Operating Officer of the electricity company, Mr John Ayodele, said the donations were part of the N100 million earmarked to support the government.
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Ayodele, who was represented by Mr Peter Oyelami, the Ibadan Regional Head of IBEDC, commended the proactive measures put in place by Federal and State Governments in the fight against the pandemic.
“IBEDC, as a law-abiding corporate citizen and socially responsible organisation, has earmarked about N100 million for relief items, namely Rice, Noodles and Semovita.
“This gesture encompasses the states we cover fully which are Ogun, Oyo, Osun and Kwara as well as those we cover partly, Niger, Kogi and Ekiti states.
“The same donations taking place here are being replicated across all the states within our coverage.
“We are supporting one major medical facility within our franchise which has been designated as an apex caregiver in the COVID-19 battle, the University College Hospital (UCH) and N55 Million is also going to other states,” he said.
According to him, the company is also committed to a regular supply of power to its customers as much as it is within its remit and control.
“We shall not disconnect non-paying customers during this period except it is based on safety advisory.
“Our staff on essential duty, the technical crew members, are on the ground to repair any fault promptly.
“All these are being done to support the various government initiatives and help to reduce the hardship the lockdown has occasioned on citizens,” Ayodele said.
In their separate remarks, the Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Mr Seun Asamu, and the Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Ojemuyiwa Ojekunle, commended IBEDC for its kind gesture.
Similarly, the Executive Adviser on Agro business in Oyo State, Mr Debo Akande, gave an assurance that the items would be used for the purpose intended.
“The items will be distributed as soon as the governor gives directives.
“We will look at the best means of distributing the items.
“We have learnt from the mistakes other states made in similar exercises.
So we are developing a protocol that we will use for the distribution,” he said.
A member of the management team, Prof. Victor Akinmoladun, who received the N5 million on behalf of UCH, said it would go a long way in the fight against the pandemic.
He urged other well meaning Nigerians and corporate organisations to emulate the gesture of IBEDC.
Akinmoladun said a team would look into how the money would be judiciously used to provide critical infrastructure in the hospital.