From Isaac Anumihe, Abuja
Inspite of the five-year extension of the operational licence of the distribution companies (DisCos), Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has ordered the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to withdraw the licence of non-performing DisCos.
Speaking to newsmen in the company of the Chief Executive Officers (CEO) of the agencies under his Ministry in Abuja, Adelabu could not understand why the nation should be operating between 3,000 megawatts and 4,000 megawatts for the past 50 years to 60 years after so much investment has been made by the government.
He observed that the problem in the industry is fundamental but not insurmountable.
“We are not unaware of the epileptic supply of electricity. We are working hard to reverse the situation. South Korea and Hyundai did not become giants all of a sudden. It’s because of power. The choice of my appointment as the Minister of Power is not a mistake. We are leaving no stone unturned to ensure that we achieve this. Nigerians’ complaints are legitimate. Nigerians are suffering from naira losing value, insecurity, lack of enough supply of electricity and high fuel cost. We are not unaware of the plight of Nigerians. They are the consequences of the actions or inactions of the past administrations. The problems of 50 years, 60 years cannot be resolved overnight.
On the call for him to resign, the minister promised that he would not resign but stay to fix the problem.
“When I took over this job, I took over curses from Nigerians. I took over call for resignation. But resignation means giving up. We will not give up. We will take up the job headlong. Quitters don’t win and winners don’t quit. I am optimistic that in my time this sector will be fixed. Where there’s no pain, there’s no gain. To make an omelette you must break the egg,” he said.
He regretted that in addition to aging infrastructure and inefficiency of the distribution companies, some unscrupulous Nigerians do not want the sector to work.
“They are determined to deliberately destroy the transmission power assets. We have spoken with Nigeria Security Agency (NSA) to protect these assets” Adelabu stated.
He opined that state governments should be involved in the protection of power assets. They should also be involved in the distribution.
Recall that in November last year, Adelabu had set up a high-powered investigation into the circumstances that led to the extension of the operational licences of the distribution companies whose performances are considered abysmally poor.
The minister who announced the probe, wondered why their operational licences should be extended for five years in the face of poor performance.
Adelabu queried the legality of the extension and the contractual correctness of it.