The Edo State Government has inaugurated a Compensation Payment Committee to cater to the compensation of 1,962 property owners on the Right of Way of the Azura Transmission Line Project.
The committee, which is made up of officials of Edo State Government, the Transmission Company of Nigeria and Federal Ministry of Power was inaugurated by Deputy Governor of the state, Rt. Hon. Comrade Philip Shaibu in Government House, Benin City.
The inauguration followed a successful enumeration of the property that will be affected in the course of the construction of 33KVA Azura Power Line, evaluation and subsequent approval by the Federal Government.
“My duty here today is to inaugurate the compensation committee to enable them commence the process of paying the persons on the right of way of the project. I want to commend all the community heads for realising that governance and development goes together; if the people refuse development, the government can’t bring development to their door step. Also, I thank TCN for their cooperation, support and understanding,” he said.
Comrade Shaibu noted that the payment has shown the credibility of government when it comes to making and keeping to promises, adding, “This compensation has shown that government can make promises and fulfil such promises. This will give courage to others to believe that government will redeem any promise made to the people. I want to thank the management of TCN and the Hon. Minister of Power for all accenting to all necessary approvals.”
The Deputy Governor assured that the Edo State Government under the leadership of Governor Godwin Obaseki is committed to making the state an electricity hub.
He said, “The catalyst that will drive the private sector economy is power. We are ready to partner with you to ensure we succeed.”
General Manager of Transmission, TCN, Jimi Adetola confirmed that the money is ready for onward transfer to beneficiaries.
He said only 1,686 of the 1,962 beneficiaries have been cleared, while the remaining 276 will be paid as soon as they meet the necessary requirements.
“The enumeration that has been done and all the package as agreed on has been approved by the Federal Government. The money has been transferred to Benin City, Edo State. The money is available for the beneficiaries. We have a total of 1, 962 beneficiaries and 1,686 have been cleared while others have some issues, which are being addressed. The beneficiaries cut across seven communities.”
