EXCUSES by functionaries of the Buhari administration for failure to light up homes and supply energy to the industries are unacceptable. After 11 months in office, the administration last week said it had been hit by inadequate supply of gas for the turbines, owing largely to vandalisation of pipelines to the thermal power stations.
Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, told a bewildered nation that, of the 140 turbines in the country, only 40 was functional. More alarming was the disclosure by the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, that on a particular day, the power generating plants all collapsed, and only less than one per cent electricity could be supplied.
The government should realise that Nigerians did not elect them to churn out excuses. Complaints and reasons for non-performance are the easiest thing to do. President Muhammadu Buhari was elected to replace the inept President Goodluck Jonathan administration because the All Progressives Congress (APC) provided an alternative plan to make the country work. One of the areas of the campaign that caught the attention of the electorate was the promise to ensure that power, which is central to tackling poverty and improving the quality of life is tackled within the first year.
No sooner was the administration inaugurated than it claimed that power had become more stable, even when it was obvious that no fresh thinking had gone into generation, transmission and distribution systems. We warned then that the victory being touted could only be sustained if new policies were put in place and known hurdles removed. The recent collapse vindicates that position.
The excuse that vandals are disrupting supply of gas to the power plants is untenable. It is as annoying as the contention that fuel is not available for domestic consumption as a result of diversion to neighbouring countries. It is the duty of government to secure vital installations nationwide with minimal disruptions to activities.
We therefore call on the Federal Government to quickly fix the problems. Apart from security breach, other challenges arising from pricing of gas, payment of displaced workers of the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) who have been picketing some distribution companies and supply of pre-paid meters should be looked into and resolved.
Interesting as the promise to ensure that licensed companies begin to generate electricity from renewable sources before the end of this year may be, the government should realise that the people will prefer that action speaks directly to them, not words that have failed many times. A lot could be done with generation of power from coal, wind, solar and bio-fuels, but it requires hard work. The three older hydro stations in Shiroro, Kainji and Jebba should not be neglected to the point that they, too, would fail to deliver. A review of the privatisation scheme and the road map inherited from the Jonathan administration with a view to checking the technical competence and financial strength of those to whom distribution was sold should be undertaken, too.
We appreciate the performance of the power minister in Lagos which probably recommended him for the job and the promise he has made to complete 47 new power projects inherited from the previous government; but Nigerians would be better assured if at the end of this year when the Buhari administration would have been close to its second anniversary, it has delivered on half the pledges it made regarding the power sector. Its present slow motion would lead nowhere.
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There is need to roll out new policies. Monopoly should be broken. It should be possible power could be generated and distributed by smaller organizations. As well it should be possible that crude oil could be refined by smaller companies. Let us take off this monopoly from Ikeja distribution company or the like. The present FG has to tackel the problems of this country from the root. That might mean total restructuring from what governance has been all the while.