Protesters in Ndokwa demand electricity as they shut down Kwale axis of Ughelli-Asaba road over 16 years of power outage and neglect
Light up Ndokwa now is the rallying cry of hundreds of frustrated residents from the Ndokwa area of Delta State, who brought traffic to a halt on Monday along the Kwale section of the Ughelli-Asaba expressway.
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The protest was a bold response to what they described as over sixteen years of deliberate darkness and neglect by authorities.
Chanting songs of anger and waving placards that read “Electricity in Ndokwa Land: Enough is Enough” and “Nepa No, IPP Yes,” the demonstrators disrupted vehicular movement for hours.
Many travellers found themselves stranded, caught in a growing gridlock as the protest intensified.
The focal point of the agitation is the Independent Power Plant located in Okpai, which, despite operating in their region, supplies electricity to several other Nigerian states while its host communities remain in total blackout.
The protesters demanded the immediate step-down of the plant to serve Ndokwa towns like Kwale, which have endured persistent power outages for over a decade.
Though the demonstration began peacefully, tensions escalated when security operatives attempted to disperse the crowd using tear gas shortly after 9 am.
Undeterred, the protesters regrouped and resumed their protest with renewed determination.
One of the demonstrators, Mr Enubuzor, voiced the community’s longstanding frustrations. “It is painful that we have something that can generate electricity for us, but we are suffering.
Our people are tired of buying fuel to power our generators,” he said. “Let them light up Ndokwa so that we can benefit from the IPP.”
Enubuzor went on to describe the environmental impact of gas flaring in the region, which contributes to unbearable heat at night and highlights the irony of their situation—hosting vital national infrastructure but living in deprivation.
The apex socio-cultural group of the Ndokwa people, the Ndokwa Neku Union (NNU), expressed partial support for the protest.
Its Publicity Secretary, Mr Azuka Odainike, clarified that while the union was not opposed to the cause, the timing of the protest was unfortunate.
He revealed that the NNU had already formed a standing committee on Sunday to address the electricity issue and was seeking dialogue with both protesters and government officials to accelerate the power step-down process.
However, the Police Public Relations Officer for the State Command, SP Bright Edafe, defended the forceful response by security agents, citing the protest’s turn to violence.
“Any protest that people will go and block the highway and burn tyres is no longer peaceful. They were burning tyres and stoning vehicles,” he stated.
As the dust settles, the message from the people remains clear. They are no longer content to live in the shadows of Nigeria’s energy industry.
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They want what is rightfully theirs—power, dignity, and visibility. Light up Ndokwa now.
