Chaos Erupts in Githogoro Village Over Prolonged Power Outage

A power struggle turned violent in Githogoro village, located near Runda Estate in Nairobi, on Friday afternoon as residents protested a persistent three-month power outage. The situation escalated when Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) officials arrived to remove transformers, a move that only intensified the frustrations of the local community.

For months, residents of Githogoro had been enduring an ongoing power blackout that left the village in darkness. Locals were quick to point fingers at KPLC, accusing the company of neglecting their concerns and causing the prolonged outage. Tensions reached a boiling point as KPLC officials appeared in the area with the intent to remove the malfunctioning transformers. The villagers saw this as a deliberate act of negligence, leading to an eruption of anger.

“We have been without power for months, and now they want to take away our last source of hope. They are not listening to us,” one of the protesters said. According to the villagers, they had raised the issue multiple times with KPLC, but no concrete actions had been taken to address the situation.

KPLC officials, however, defended their actions, explaining that the removal of the transformers was part of routine maintenance activities. They denied any claims of sabotage or neglect.

As tensions rose, the protests turned violent, with demonstrators hurling stones at KPLC vehicles. The crowd demanded immediate restoration of electricity, and in a show of defiance, they blocked key roads, preventing the KPLC vehicles from leaving the area until a new transformer was brought in.

After hours of standoff, power was eventually restored to some parts of Githogoro village, though large sections of the area remained in darkness. The transformer that had been the source of the outage was found to be faulty, and repairs were ongoing.

Local authorities, including the area chief and officers from the Runda police station, arrived on the scene to restore order. They urged the residents to avoid taking matters into their own hands and to work with the authorities to find a peaceful resolution.

While power was partially restored, the situation in Githogoro remains tense, with residents expressing concerns over the long-term reliability of electricity in the area. The events in Githogoro serve as a stark reminder of the growing frustration among communities facing unreliable basic services and the need for more accountable responses from service providers like KPLC.

The incident is likely to put further pressure on KPLC to address power shortages and prevent similar outbursts in the future.

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Chaos Erupts in Githogoro Village Over Prolonged Power Outage