By Victor Akaa.
The Nigerian Army (NA) has denied allegations of invading the EKO Electricity Distribution Company’s (EKEDC) substation in Badagry, Lagos.l State.
Lieutenant Colonel Olabisi Olalekan Ayeni, 81 Division’s Acting Deputy Director Army Public Relations,disclosed this Wednesday said the allegations were totally untrue, fake, malicious and should be disregarded.
According to him, the allegations were made by the Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Nigeria Electricity Distributors during an interview with Arise Television on March 18, 2025.
He noted that, the incident in question occurred within the Topo Barracks in Badagry, where a power surge triggered a fire incident after power supply was restored following a month-long outage.
He noted that soldiers on duty promptly coordinated with EKEDC personnel to contain the situation, and the company’s technical staff rectified the fault without incident.
“The power supply was restored in the early hours of 14 March 2025, at about 12:30 AM. Following the restoration, a power surge occurred, triggering a fire incident in the barracks at a facility managed by EKEDC.
“This caused serious panic in the barracks, and in response , the soldiers on duty immediately coordinated efforts with EKEDC personnel to contain the situation.
“The company’s technical staff were granted access to the barracks at about 1: 00 AM to rectify the fault, and they departed around 2:30 AM after successfully addressing the issue.” The statement read in parts.
The NA emphasised that there was no invasion of the EKEDC substation, no staff were abducted or detained, and the incident was resolved amicably.
He explained that the Board of Inquiry has been constituted by the Commanding Officer
to investigate the incident and ensure transparency.
The NA also expressed concern that footage aired by Arise TV was from a different incident and did not involve NA personnel, creating a misleading narrative.
He reaffirms the NA’s commitment to upholding human rights and maintaining cordial relationships with host communities and stakeholders
