Royal Gardens Estate residents seek Lagos assembly’s intervention over electricity, service charge row

Residents of Royal Gardens Estate in Ajah, Lagos, have asked the state house of assembly to intervene in their prolonged crisis with the developer, Trojan Estate, over electricity supply and service charges.

The leadership of the residents, under the aegis of the Royal Gardens Estate Residents Association (RGERA), led by Anthony Ogbebor, its chairman, made the call on Tuesday while appearing before the house committee on housing chaired by Segun Ege, the lawmaker representing Ojo 1.

THE ISSUE

Since 2024, residents of the estate and the developer—Trojan Estate—have been in a long-running battle over the controversial bulk metering system.

Under the bulk metering system, the residents of the estate are billed collectively, leaving individuals unable to reconcile their payments.

However, residents have insisted that they preferred a prepaid individual household metering system.

The dispute heightened on May 26, 2024, when Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) disconnected the estate from the national grid, forcing residents to rely on diesel generators and solar power.

While EKEDC has expressed readiness to switch to direct metering, Trojan Estate has reportedly resisted, sparking allegations of manipulation and abuse of authority.

Beyond power supply, the residents accuse the developer of undermining democratic governance in the estate by imposing decisions, stifling their association, and interfering in community projects.

They also cite arbitrary service charges, disconnections despite valid payments, and poor sanitation management.

THE MEETING WITH HOUSE COMMITTEE

Speaking during the meeting with the house committee, the chairman of RGERA said residents of the estate had endured unfair practices by the developer for more than a decade, which, according to him, worsened in the last 18 months.

Ogbebor added that under the current arrangement, all households in the estate are connected to a single meter in the common area, leaving residents collectively liable for the entire bill.

He said while neighbouring estates such as VGC and Crown Estate are directly metered by EKEDC, Trojan Estate had blocked RGERA from enjoying a similar treatment.

Ogbebor accused Trojan Estate of allegedly ignoring several invitations from the Nigerian Electricity Commission (NEC) to mediate on the matter and instead challenged the regulator’s jurisdiction in court.

He disclosed that the case has been pending in court for over a year.

The RGERA chairman asked the Lagos assembly to “uphold residents’ rights through implementation of the agreements in our sub-leases and ensure that governance of the estate is participatory, democratic, and consistent”.

“We do not want to take the law into our hands. That is why we are appealing to the House to intervene. This is about fundamental human rights,” Ogbebor said.

“Mandate transparency in future service charge proposals: compel the developer and his agents to subject all future service charge proposals to the agreements.

“Mandate the developer to allow EKDC to independently manage RGE electricity as stipulated in our sub-leases. Section 3.16 of our sub-leases states, “To execute all documents required by the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) and to pay all charges required for connection of electricity to the plot, and subsequent PHCN rates or charges for electricity consumption.”

“Audit and oversight: Direct an independent audit of past service charge collections and expenditures.”

Lawmakers at the hearing reportedly directed Trojan Estate to produce documents on the court case and promised to revisit the matter.