Tailors in Aba, the commercial hub of Abia State, on Wednesday staged a protest against alleged extortion by Aba Power Limited (APL), a subsidiary of Geometric Power.
According to NAN, the protesters alleged that despite the epileptic power supply from APL, the company was trying to run them out of business with estimated bills.
A former Chairman of the Association of Tailors and Fashion Designers in the state, Mr Onyebuchi Nwigwe, said that they were not happy with the activities of APL, which, he said, were affecting their trade.
Another tailor, Ikenna Agu, said they were pained because the company used policemen and soldiers to harass and intimidate them to pay.
He said the company came with soldiers on Saturday to their business premises, disconnected their lines without prior warning, and beat up some of them, including some customers.
He appealed to the state government to intervene urgently and call the company to order.
"How can I be paying N18,000 monthly in my small shop when I don't have up to 24 hours light in a month?
"They bring 38 bills in our building, which does not have 38 shops," he said.
Meanwhile, the Chief Commercial Officer of APL, Mr Blessing Ogbe, debunked the allegations, saying the tailors' clusters were placed on the busiest electricity feeder.
When contacted, the Commissioner for Trade, Commerce and Industry, Dr Chimezie Okegwu, said he was unaware of the protest and complaint by the tailors.
Okegwu, however, promised that the state government would investigate the alleged extortion when it receives a formal report.
He promised the government would not tolerate the extortion of business concerns and residents.
"Any extortion is illegal as long as it is truly extortion, but another thing is for us to know if it is extortion", he said.
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