Untrained technician who runs power project

By Amos Kareithi and Boniface Gikandi

The man wearing an overall and scraggly boots casts his eye up a ten-metre pole as he adjusts a tool which has metal hooks.

Using red cables to hoist himself up, the electrician slowly ascends the smooth pole, using the metal hooks to fasten his foothold.

Peter Mwangi, 39, has never seen the inside of an electrical class but life has handed him a certificate which has endeared him to village-mates as their electrician.

For the last six years, Mwangi has been prowling a four-kilometer square area attending to every emergency of a local electricity project.

When he is not on top of electric poles clipping cables to cut off those who default monthly payment, Mwangi can be seen around Ireke and Rwathia areas in Njumbi, Murang’a District, straightening wobbly posts.

"I am on call 24 hours a day. Every villager has my number and those who do not can reach me through the project committee members. I attend to all emergencies," Mwangi explains.

Maintenance of the power project plant is a constant undertaking. [PHOTO:AMOS KAREITHI/STANDARD]

Though he has not been formally trained, Mwangi has established himself as a one-man emergency squad, connecting and disconnecting consumers of Kahinduini Hydro Electricity Project.

Casual jobs

He gained his expertise from doing casual jobs with contractors for the Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC).

"Over the years I learned how to connect power, install electricity cables and tighten loose wires," adds the technician.

He has also learnt how to maintain the village powerhouse, grease the turbines, and detect when the generator is faulty.

The duty of wiring the houses of members to be connected to the electricity grid has been left to a trained technician, Thuo Gathonjia while the technical aspect of Kahinduini micro hydropower project is headed by Engineer Kinyua Ngige, whose expertise is certified by KPLC.

While Mwangi is minding the transmission wires and ensuring defaulting customers are denied power, another technician literally camps at the powerhouse.

"In case there is a problem I call him on phone and he switches off the generator to enable me get fix the problem. In the event of a defect, we have automatic circuit breakers," Mwangi adds.

Committee

The four-man workforce is supervised by a thirteen-member committee, under the chairmanship of Francis Gatuni.

The committee buys the project poles locally, purchasing each at Sh500. However, the eucalyptus poles must be treated with used engine oil and pesticides to guard against termites and rotting.

"We have no fixed salaries. We give the workers a token from the money paid by consumers at the end of every month," says Gatuni.

He says when a consumer’s power is disconnected for lack of payment, he is supposed to meet the cost of reconnection.