Going beyond supplying light to communities, Ikeja Electric through its Personal Corporate Social Responsibility program, which is a channel to build mutual relationship between the company and its host, recently gave back to Olambe community in Akute
For the Olambe community, a boundary town in Akute, it was joy galore when the Personal Corporate Social Responsibility (PCSR) train of Ikeja Electric (IE) singled them out.
Armed with educational materials and school uniforms, the staff of IE also gave safety talks to the school children about electricity and electrical appliances.
For the school, the gesture was well appreciated given that the first week of September is usually a trying period for most parents in Nigeria due to the pressure of paying their children’s school fees and providing other requirements for the start of a new school session.
Thus this heather was aimed as reducing the financial burden on parents during the resumption period.
IE’s PCSR are woven on three pillars- Education, Empowerment and Health. For health, the company carries out World Malaria Day program and free health fair; for empowerment, they carry out youth empowerment while for Education, they carry out back to school program.
Harping on this year’s PCSR, the Business Manager Abule Egba, Mr Oloyede Adelakun, said IE usually identifies some of the gaps in the society particularly in schools, which informed the Back to School Campaign, adding that they have made it a yearly program.
He noted that Ikeja Electric has six business units which comprises Ikeja, Abule Egba, Akowonjo, Ikorodu, Ikorodu, Shomolu and Oshodi.
Abule Egba on the other hand has six undertakings under it which comprises Olambe, Iju, Akute, Fagba, Adiyan and Ijaye, with population of over 150 customers.
Adelakun said the Abule Egba unit set out to help the children in the area by providing school bags, water bottles and other basic things and in addition school uniforms were also provided to some of the students who were not wearing their school uniform.
He further stated that they have continued to maintain a mutual relationship with the customers and communities under his unit over the years. “In the past six-eight months, we have made ourselves accessible to the people of the community and ensured every complaint from them are sorted out within 24hours.
“In the last three months, they have also increased availability in terms of supply of electricity. Thus, connection has also increased by 30per cent”.
The ripple effect of this symbiotic relation is that they both parties live peaceably with each other. On the issue of prepaid meter he said: “In terms of prepaid meters, we organise meetings with the community strategic leaders and also carry out customer engagement in all locations by organising customer fairs on Saturdays. In the customer fairs, we interact with the community, listen to their complains and solve it immediately.
“We have successful carried out the fairs in the following communities; Fagba, Ijaye, Iju and Adiyan. Also, IE is working on increasing the power supply but first, we are closing the metering gap to avoid loss of power as the metering density states that the higher the increase in supply, there is a tendency for losses.
“In return, Ikeja Electric expects the community to reciprocate by paying bills promptly, ensure IE equipment in the neighborhood are protected against theft and vandalism.”
Also speaking, the PCSR, Brand and Events Supervisor,
Mrs Adebimpe Akintola, said that in Ikeja Electric, in a way to give back to the community came up with PCSR (Personal Corporate Social Responsibility) program.
Breaking it down further she said: “PCSR is a channel to connect with the community, build mutual organisational relationship between IE and the community, take care of their welfare not just giving and disconnecting light. It is also a way for the community to know that once they pay their bills promptly, IE can give back to them.
“We just had a youth empowerment program was just concluded and some youths were sponsored.
The back to school program is done every new academic session and focus is public schools. The pupils are sensitised by giving them a talk on safety while the back to school packs are handed over to them afterwards.
“This year, Ikeja Electric out of its six business units decided to carry out the back to school campaign at Ikorodu and Abule Egba concurrently. In search of public school at Abule Egba where they have high population of students in need of back to school packs, Community Primary School, Olambe, Akute was picked.”
The basic safety talk given at Community Primary School Olambe on what the students need to know about electricity and electrical appliances was given by Mr Moses Oyeniran, the Quality, Health, Safety and Environment Specialist Abule Egba Business Unit, Mr Oloyede Adelakun.
The Olambe CDC Chairman, Comrade Omolade Ganiyu who was present with his team during the back to school campaign at Community Primary School, Olambe on behalf of the Olambe community applauded Ikeja Electric for their social responsibilities to the Olambe community and pleaded it continues. He also mentioned that the Olambe Community will continue to partner
Ikeja Electric.
Mr Fatai Mustapha, the head teacher Community Primary School Olambe with population of about 400 learners, 11 government staff teachers, seven empowered teachers and one PTA teacher, expressed his gratitude towards Ikeja Electric for giving back to school packs to about 250 students present and school uniform to 14 students that do not have uniform.
He mentioned that he has encountered Ikeja Electric giving out back to school pack two years ago at a school at Adiya where he was the headteacher.
For the beneficiaries, it was one huge favour. Oloruntola Balikis, a 12-year-old pupil in basic six stated that she is excited about the back to school packs given to her and other students. She also mentioned that she appreciated the safety talk and would tell her parent to move the cooking gas from the kitchen to the balcony.
Moyosore Olanrewaju, a 10-year-old pupil in basic four also expressed her gratitude to Ikeja Electric for the back to school packs. Praying that God should continue to bless the people of Ikeja Electric, she also stated that she would tell her friends at home that they are no longer called NEPA but Ikeja Electric.
Adesua Daniel, an eleven-year-old pupil in basic six, who expressed his gratitude for the kind gesture, promised to put into practice what he learnt during the safety talk like not playing under the electric power line.
