Pubic institutions, especially hospitals, were the worse hit as Zambia was plunged into total darkness on Sunday, November 24, following a national power outage.

Reports confirmed that major public hospitals, including the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) in Lusaka and Kitwe Teaching Hospital, were left in complete darkness due to the outage, disrupting healthcare services.

The country’s power utility company, ZESCO Limited, had announced that the nation experienced a power system disturbance at 20:15 hours, leading to a nationwide loss of power supply that affected the entire country.

A statement issued by ZESCO Acting Managing Director Justin Longo, confirmed that efforts were underway to restore power and resolve the unplanned outage, assuring the public that the company was working diligently to restore normal service as quickly as possible.

“ZESCO will keep the country updated on this unforeseen development,” Longo said in the statement.

“We regret the unplanned loss of supply and seek the support and patience of our customers during this time.

“ZESCO has committed to providing regular updates on the progress of power restoration and the cause of the disturbance.”

Zambia Monitor reports that the unexpected blackout caused significant inconvenience, particularly for essential services like hospitals, as well as households and businesses across the country.

“While the situation is still unfolding, ZESCO has emphasized its dedication to restoring normal service and ensuring that the power supply is fully restored to all affected areas as soon as possible,” the platform said.

The Ministry of Information and Media Permanent Secretary, Thabo Kawana, who also released a statement on the blackout, informed the nation that no deaths or critical incidents were recorded during this period.

Kawana, in a statement issued on Monday morning said this was despite the blackout affecting hospitals.

“During this period, backup systems functioned as intended. Specifically, the emergency generators at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) activated immediately, ensuring uninterrupted power supply to life support systems and other essential medical equipment.

“Further, government wishes to inform the nation that no deaths or critical incidents were recorded during this period. ZESCO restored power to UTH after 30 minutes, resuming normal operations,” he said.

Kawana further noted that the technical teams were currently investigating the cause of the outage and working to prevent similar incidents in the future, adding that “government assures the public of its commitment to maintaining reliable power supply.”

The Nigerian government says it will begin tracking social media accounts run by terrorists following a disturbing infiltration of the space by insurgents and bandits.

In recent times, known terrorists and bandit leaders have been using different social media platforms to either propagate their agenda or taunt security operatives, with some daring authorities to engage them in direct combat.

A new Islamist terror group, Lakurawa, was also discovered to be using social media platforms to spread their propaganda and recruit young Nigerians with monetary incentives .

Others like notorious bandit kingpin, Bello Turji go as far as displaying wads of cash they collect as ransom for kidnapped victims or announcing give aways.

In recent videos he has posted on TikTok, Turji has been seen brandishing weapons and calling out the Chief of Defense Staff (CDS), Gen. Chris Musa, challenging the military to come and get him.

Worried by the ugly trend, the Nigerian Defence Headquarters has now resolved to start tracking such social media accounts.

National Coordinator of yhf Counter-Terrorism Centre, Office of the National Security Adviser, Maj. Gen. Adamu Laka, who revealed the plans, said the government was actively working to counter the trend by terrorists.

“Yes, we have noticed it and are taking actions against such trends,” Laka said while fielding question from journalists on whether the centre was aware of the increased usage of social media by terrorists.

Laka who however dismissed threats by terrorist groups as mere propaganda aimed at instilling fear in Nigerians, urged citizens to remain calm and disregard such statements.

“These threats are part of their propaganda to create fear among the population. Nigerians should disregard them,” he said, while describing terrorists in the country as cowards, challenging them to a direct combat with the security agents to prove themselves.

“If the terrorists are that bold and equipped, let them inform the security agencies where they are and invite them to a fight. But the truth is they are cowards,” he added.