The Electricity Distribution Company has condemned the invasion of its corporate headquarters by Nigerian Air Force personnel from the Sam Ethnan Air Force Base in Ikeja, Lagos State.
The soldiers brutalized a PUNCH Newspapers correspondent, Dare Olawin, and other journalists, and invaded the premises over a N4bn debt.
The incident occurred on Thursday, March 7, 2025, when the Air Force personnel, led by a woman and some men in mufti, stormed the IKEDC headquarters opposite MITV, Ikeja, Lagos, around 7:40 am. They were loaded in a military truck, two OP-MESA vehicles, and others.
The journalists, who were on the premises for an assignment, were dragged out of their vehicle and beaten. Our correspondent, Dare Olawin, sustained an injury in his left eye, while a TVC cameraman had his tripod, camera, and memory card taken away.
The Air Force operatives vandalized doors, CCTV cameras, and other gadgets in the office. They also seized the office of Ikeja Electric for over one and a half hours, beating workers and other people sighted on the premises. The roads leading to the office were blocked, giving the military men a field day to molest those within the premises of Ikeja Electric.
The spokesman for the IKEDC, Kingsley Okotie, condemned the attack, stating that the company had to disconnect the feeder supplying electricity to the base after its electricity bills accumulated to N4bn. Okotie explained that the men in military camouflage vandalized doors, CCTV cameras, and other gadgets in the office.
The National Association of Nigerian Students has described the attack on our correspondent as an attack on Nigeria’s democracy, describing the development as the height of irresponsibility. The students’ body made this known through a statement signed by its National Public Relations Officer, Samson Adeyemi.
When contacted over the telephone about the incident, the Nigerian Air Force spokesperson, Air Commodore Olusola Akinboyewa, told our correspondent that the matter was being addressed and that an official statement would be released to PUNCH Metro.
The attack on IKEDC and the brutalization of journalists by Air Force personnel is a clear violation of human rights and the rule of law. It is imperative that the Nigerian Air Force takes immediate action to investigate this incident and bring those responsible to justice.