The Nigeria Security and Civil
Defence Corps, Akwa Ibom
State Command, has arrested a
Power Holding Company of
Nigeria service manager and
eight others for allegedly
engaging in illegal poles
planting and cables theft.
The eight men were said to
have been nabbed following a
tip-off from residents that some
vandals were tampering
with the PHCN installations at
Nung Oku in Ibesikpo/Asutan
Local Government Area.
It was learnt that the service
manager, Ibesikpo/Asutan
LGA’s PHCN office was arrested
for alleged complicity in the
crime.
The command’s head, Public
Relations/Protocol, Mr. Ime
White, told PUNCH Metro in Uyo
on Monday that following
the tip-off, the state
commandant of the agency, Mr.
Pedro Ideba, quickly mobilised
patrol teams to the area.
He explained that the
command’s prompt action was
also
necessitated by the fear that if
the vandals were quacks,
they could be electrocuted.
White said following the arrest
of the suspects, the
command impounded the truck
they were using, which
had PHCN label indicating that
the vandals were from the
Port Harcourt district.
He noted that investigation,
however, revealed that though
the vandals posed as PHCN
workers, none had ever worked
with the parastatal.
He added that NSCDC had
impounded feeder cables,
insulators, ladder and other
working tools recovered from
the suspects.
He said, “We discovered a
purported contract of
transplanting poles being
undertaken by one Jenkins
International Limited.
“It was the duty of the service
manager, PHCN, Ibesikpo/
Asutan LGA, to have notified the
Uyo District of such jobs,
but that did not happen.
“Upon the arrest of the
suspects, we discovered that
the
truck they were using had
PHCN label that has to do with
metering project of Port
Harcourt district and not Akwa
Ibom. Although they posed as
PHCN workers, we
discovered that none of them
worked with the company.
Feeder cables, insulators,
ladders and other working
tools, were all impounded
here.”
He stated that when the
command contacted Uyo office
of the PHCN to verify if there
was any contract they gave to
Jenkins International Limited,
the office denied knowledge of
such deal.
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