Banks flee Ibafo over poor power supply

Residents of Ibafo in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State have called on the Ogun State Government and Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) to help restore power supply to the area to boost economic and commercial activities in the area, just as commercial banks in the area are closing operations due to poor power supply.Community News learnt that the three commercial banks with branches in the area have closed down their operations in the town due to poor power supply, declaring that it was not profitable for them to be running the branches on generators.Community News findings revealed that the residents of Ibafo and its environs now travel to Ikeja, a distance of about 25 kilometer or go to the premises of Redeemed Christian Church at Mowe, before they can do any banking transaction.'It is very sad. The poor power supply is really creating havoc here. Before, about three commercial banks had their branches here, but due to poor power supply they have all left. Because they were using generators for 24hours a day and they considered it unprofitable and since banks were created to make profit, they (banks) considered it unwise to be staying in Ibafo to do banking transaction. Now; we have to go to Ikeja or Mowe. We are calling on the authorities of PHCN and Ogun State government to come to our rescue,' a hotelier in Ibafo who sought anonymity, told Community News.Findings also revealed that most business ventures in the area depended on generators to power their machines.'Our case is very sad. I run hotel and to satisfy our customers and patrons, we have to run generators 24hours a day. We spend all the income we generate on diesel, petrol and generator maintenance', he said.Apart from killing business ventures, the situation is also affecting security situation in the area as men of the underworld often take advantage of the darkness to launch attack on the people.
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