- Insists on review as remedy
BY EDMOND ODOK, ABUJA – President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan says Nigeria needs an urgent review of the power sector privatisation to effectively address the current debilitating electricity challenges in the country.
He said the evident epileptic power supply across the country clearly indicates failure of the exercise and therefore demands a review for effective service delivery.
“We are going to support the executive arm of government… We will suggest that going forward, we have to revisit the privatisation because apparently the companies are not able to provide the power that we thought they could by now,” Lawan said.
Senator Lawan spoke when executive committee members of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) visited him in Abuja on Thursday, saying; “I think the privatisation has not worked. It has failed because the essence of privatisation is to create efficiency.”
The Senate President told his visitors who complained about the sordid state of electricity supply and its adverse effects on the country that; “It appears most of the companies, the DISCOs (Distribution Companies), have no sufficient capital and probably the same thing with the GENCOs (Generation Companies).”
He acknowledged government efforts at creating a better situation for the privatised sector, noting that out of desperation to enhance electricity supply and related services, the government gave out so much money to the power companies.
“I think the time has come for government to take a very drastic but necessary decision. If we have privatised the DISCOs and the GENCOs, I think, the private sector, those who have taken them over, should be able to make them work better than they were before.
“If they cannot, I think we need to revisit this privatisation because we cannot go on like that. We should look at the larger interest of Nigerians not of those companies that have taken over the power sector – the DISCOs and the GENCOs”, the Senate President said
Senator Lawan said the issue of power has remained one of the major challenges of Nigeria’s economic growth, adding that “there is no way we can make any serious progress without adequate and steady power supply”.
On MAN’s complaint about delay encountered in clearing goods at the nation’s seaports, Lawan expressed his confidence that the Federal Government committee on Ease of Doing Business chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo would successfully address the issue.
According to him, the committee has since its inception done a lot to normalize and restore efficiency at the ports, even as he assured them of the National Assembly’s readiness to partner with it for the growth and development of the nation’s economy.
“Feel free to always come to us when there is need for legislative intervention,” the Senate President said.
In his speech at the visit, MAN President, Engineer Mansur Ahmed listed insecurity, debilitating power supply and delay in clearing goods as major challenges confronting its members
Ahmed said these challenges have resulted in lack of competitiveness by the nation’s manufacturers
