- Newborn of our staff dies from post-delivery, not COVID-19 complications – Egbin MD
Egbin Power, one of Africa’s largest thermal electricity generation companies, has denied report that a newborn by one of its staff died on its premises due to COVID-19 protocols.
Acting Chief Executive Officer of the plant that provides a quarter of Nigeria’s total power generation, Paul Harriman, declared in a statement to Platforms Africa that though the newborn of one of its staff died due to post-delivery complications outside the facility, the death has nothing to do with COVID-19 or restrictions on its facility according to protocols.
“A particularly devious aspect of the report claimed that an employee lost a newborn child due to the company’s COVID-19 precautionary protocols.
“This is utterly false and a misrepresentation of the facts as the unfortunate incident was due to post-delivery complications outside the facility. The report is unconscionable and obviously a smear campaign which will not deter our commitment to achieving the all-important goal of bringing energy to the nation, safely, reliably and efficiently,” Harriman said.
He reaffirmed that the company’s employees have not been compelled to remain within the premises as a result of the pandemic, contrary to the reports.
“We have a globally acclaimed procedure that requires a period of quarantine for people that have left the plant to ensure the safety of all our employees and their families.
“The company’s seamless business continuity plan and its proven safety machinery, Harriman said, continues to drive high performance levels and employee well-being,” the statment read.
The deployment of the company’s safety protocol in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Harriman continued, had “paved the way for zero disruption at the power plant which provides a quarter of power generated in Nigeria.”
According to him, in addition to virtual operations, employees who have to run the plant in person, remain in full compliance with all safety precautions, helping Egbin maintain an optimal generation capacity in the first half of the year.
“From the basic precautionary measures and protocols advised by the NCDC and WHO to Egbin’s in-house protocol, we have the situation under control at the plant.
“Prior to the pandemic, we had a remarkable safety record of over 3.7 million man hours with zero Loss Time Injury (LTI) and this positive record continues amid the pandemic,” he said.
“As a foremost corporate citizen, we are committed to the safety of all our employees and what we have at the plant is a collective responsibility shared by all employees to make everyone’s safety paramount,” he said.
Noting that the media reports may have been sponsored by people targeting Nigeria’s “national security”, given Egbin’s critical role, Harriman urged well-meaning Nigerians to ignore the reports.
Harriman said Egbin would continue to mitigate the risk of exposure of its employees and their families to Covid-19 through adequate access to healthcare services and provision of relief items to cushion the impact of the pandemic.
“As a foremost power generating company, Egbin remains committed to providing this critical and essential service to Nigeria through continuity of our operations during this challenging period. We continue to seek and appreciate the understanding, continued co-operation and support of all employees and stakeholders. We all need to take responsibility and remain vigilant in order to prevent further spread of COVID-19 in Nigeria,” he added.
