UCH spends about N80 million monthly on electricity bills – JOHESU  

According to him, the hospital’s inability to sustain the payment led to the disconnection of supply from the facility by the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) on October 26.

While noting that UCH has not had a power supply since then, Olabampe appealed to the Federal Government to urgently intervene in the hospital’s power outage crisis.

“There has been no power at UCH since October 26, when the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) disconnected the hospital over accumulated debts.

“The bills from IBEDC are alarming and outrageous for an institution like UCH. The government must step in to assist the hospital,” he explained.

Olabampe further emphasized the dire situation, saying, “The power costs are overwhelming, costs are killing us. We are paying between N70 million and N80 million each month, yet we still rely on diesel to keep essential services running because we don’t have light for 24 hours.”

“This is why the hospital management requested that IBEDC downgrade UCH to Band B, where the costs are more manageable. However, IBEDC has yet to make this change.”  

“We ask IBEDC to work with UCH management to settle part of the outstanding bill for now, so they can reconnect us while payment negotiations continue,” he added.

“Patients are suffering. My father hasn’t been attended to because the results of his test haven’t come out, and they keep saying ‘no light,’’ said Mr. Ismail Mohammed, a relative of one of the patients.

Despite these challenges, UCH management is working tirelessly to find solutions and restore normal services, with Olabampe expressing hope that the situation will soon improve.

“We are doing our best to address the power issue. But we need government intervention to ease the financial burden and ensure uninterrupted services,” Olabampe concluded.

The JOHESU Chairman’s call for urgent support comes as UCH continues to struggle with balancing its operational costs and the need to provide quality healthcare to the people of Ibadan and beyond.