Business owners in Jos, Plateau State, are celebrating the end of a 10-day power outage that heavily impacted northern Nigeria. Power was restored on Wednesday morning, bringing relief to shops, beer parlours, and restaurants that endured operational losses and reduced sales.
The outage began due to a 330kV transmission line failure between Benue and Enugu states, leaving several northern regions, including Plateau, in darkness. Many businesses faced increased costs from using alternative power sources, with shop owner Nkechi from Rantiya sharing, “We lost customers every day. Without power, we couldn’t operate properly.”
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Earlier, Presidential Adviser Bayo Onanuga announced that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu held an emergency meeting with Power Minister Adebayo Adelabu and National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu, pushing for swift restoration efforts. Onanuga also addressed issues of vandalism and asset destruction, stressing Tinubu’s commitment to prevent future incidents.
Though power is back, local business owners and residents remain cautiously optimistic. Abdul, a shopkeeper, commented, “We are relieved, but we hope this doesn’t happen again.” Calls for better infrastructure security have grown, as stakeholders emphasize the need for long-term solutions to avert future crises.
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