I was at the NEPA office a few days ago, and something happened that stayed with me long after I left. It was not just a conversation about electricity or billing—it became a lesson about life, systems, and human behavior. Sometimes, the most ordinary places reveal the deepest truths if you pay attention. How to Live with Integrity, Justice, and Faithfulness as a Christian.
A staff member was visibly upset as he spoke about people who bypass prepaid meters. You could hear the frustration in his voice. According to him, those individuals were cheating the system, using electricity without paying, and increasing costs for the company. He said with confidence that one day, they would catch all of them.
As he spoke, I listened carefully. His anger was understandable on the surface. No system can function properly when people exploit it. But something about the conversation felt incomplete to me. So I responded with a simple statement: when the system is bad, everyone suffers.
That statement caught his attention immediately. He looked at me, trying to understand what I meant. I continued, telling him that he was only upset because the issue was now affecting him directly. I added something that made him pause: “When your company starts taking advantage of people, you will likely keep quiet—because you are benefiting from it.”
He asked me to explain further, and that opened the door to a deeper discussion. I asked him a question: what happens when people travel and are not at home, yet they continue to receive electricity bills—even when there is no usage? I pointed out that their system can detect consumption, so they should be able to see when there is none. Let’s learn to be accountable in Nigeria.
His response was practical, but also revealing. He said people are advised to write and notify the office before traveling so their billing can be paused. On the surface, that sounds reasonable. But I asked him another question: what happens if someone forgets to write? Does that mean they should keep paying for electricity they did not use?
He did not see anything wrong with that arrangement. Instead, he returned to his original concern—that they would eventually catch those bypassing the meter. That was when I asked him a question that exposed the imbalance in the system: if you have the capacity to track people who are not paying, why don’t you use that same capacity to stop charging people who are paying for what they did not use?
That question lingered between us. It revealed something deeper than electricity billing. It revealed how systems can sometimes be structured in ways that favor the institution while placing the burden on the individual. And more importantly, it showed how people often defend injustice when they are on the benefiting side of it.
The concept of estimated billing itself is another example. Whether you use electricity or not, you are billed. Sometimes the bill is accurate, but many times it is not. It becomes a guessing game, and the customer carries the cost of that uncertainty. That is not just a technical issue—it is a fairness issue.
But beyond electricity, this experience reflects a broader truth about life. Injustice is rarely one-sided forever. It has a way of rotating. Today, you may be on the side that benefits. Tomorrow, you may find yourself on the receiving end. And when that happens, your perspective will change instantly.
One major lesson from this is that fairness should not be conditional. It should not depend on whether you are the one being affected. Many people only speak up when they are personally hurt. Before that moment, they ignore the system, defend it, or even participate in it. But true integrity is shown when you stand for what is right—even when it does not directly benefit you. Take responsibility for your actions.
Another lesson is that systems are shaped by the people within them. A system does not become unfair on its own. It becomes unfair when people tolerate injustice, justify it, or choose convenience over truth. Every time someone looks away instead of speaking up, the system becomes stronger in the wrong direction.
There is also a personal lesson here about consistency. It is easy to demand justice in one area while ignoring it in another. The staff member wanted accountability for those bypassing meters, but he did not apply the same standard to the system’s own shortcomings. This kind of inconsistency is common in many areas of life. We want fairness when it protects us, but we relax our standards when it benefits us.
Another important takeaway is the danger of normalizing small injustices. Over time, what once felt wrong begins to feel normal. People adjust. They accept it. They stop questioning it. But normalization does not make something right—it only makes it more difficult to correct later.
There is also a lesson about responsibility. Institutions have a responsibility to be fair, but individuals also have a responsibility to act with integrity. Those bypassing meters are not justified simply because the system has flaws. Two wrongs do not create a right system. Instead, they deepen the problem and make trust harder to rebuild.
At the same time, systems must also be accountable. It is not enough to enforce rules on individuals while ignoring structural issues. True justice requires balance. It requires that both sides—individuals and institutions—are held to the same standard of fairness.
Another real-life lesson is empathy. It is easy to dismiss someone’s struggle when you are not experiencing it. The staff member did not see the issue with billing people who were not consuming electricity because it was not affecting him directly. But empathy allows you to step into another person’s situation and see things from their perspective. Without empathy, injustice thrives quietly.
There is also a lesson about awareness. Many people go through life without questioning how systems work. They accept things as they are, even when those things are flawed. But growth requires awareness. It requires asking questions, thinking deeply, and refusing to accept everything at face value. Treat everyone right.
Finally, this experience reminds us that injustice has consequences. It may not show immediately, but it always returns. A system that is unfair will eventually lose trust. And when trust is lost, everything becomes more difficult—compliance, cooperation, and progress.
The point is simple but powerful. Injustice affects everyone at some point. If you support it today because it benefits you, be careful. The same system may turn against you tomorrow. And when it does, you may discover that no one is left to speak for you.
So the question is not just about NEPA, electricity, or billing. The question is about you. Where do you stand when it comes to fairness? Do you only speak when it affects you, or do you stand for what is right consistently?
Because in the end, the kind of system we live in is shaped by the kind of people we choose to be.
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