By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Country Director, Energy Market and Regulatory Consultants (EMRC), Mrs Rahila Thomas, has explained why electricity distribution companies in Nigeria fondly called DisCos, are not performing optimally.
Mrs Thomas, speaking in Abuja at a one-day round table discussion organised by the Nigerian Senate on Addressing Nigeria’s Power Problems, stated that these electricity firms were cash-strapped.
“DisCos are not collecting sufficient cash to meet upstream obligations,” Mrs Thomas at the event while giving a presentation on the evolution of Nigeria’s electricity supply industry.
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Power, Mr Gabriel Suswam, said at the forum that, “The challenges in the power sector can be categorized into five crowd areas: Institution and Governance, Infrastructural, Political, Legislative and Environmental.”
He stated that, “The workable solution may be holistic and should take into account these broad challenges. We are here today to find solutions to electricity challenges in our country.”
Speaking further, he explained that the roundtable was organised as a result of a motion brought to the Senate on addressing Nigeria’s power problems on Tuesday, November 19, 2019, noting that the Senate resolved to hold the programme to address these issues and provide working solutions.”
In his contribution, the Minister of Power, Mr Saleh Mamman, stated that, “The most important factor in addressing the power sector is building synergy and team spirit. We have identified this at the Ministerial level. I wish all of us a fruitful resolution that will help in solving these problems.”
His counterpart in the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, who was represented by Mrs Evelyn Amobi, lauded the commitment of the legislative to work with the executive to resolve the issues affecting the power sector.
She assured that, “All the decisions that will be made here will have our full support and be taken to the executive.”
Senate Leader, Mr Yahaya Abdullahi, said at the forum that, “A lot of resources have been used in finding solutions into problems that have put this country backwards.
“It is the concern of the Senate to look into each other’s eyes and say the truth. We are here to own up to the issues that face this particular centre and work to find solutions to the major problem that affects the delivery of power to Nigeria.”
Senate President, Mr Ahmad Lawan, while speaking at the event, noted that, “If there is any single sector of our economy that is so important and so challenged, it is the power sector.”
He said, “This is a sector that needs a declaration of emergency. This is an opportunity for us to discuss the solutions and the way forward. The truth is we all know what is wrong, what we really need to do is to have the political will to take on the challenges frontally.”
“From the electricity power reform of 2005 and the privatization of Discos, with what is happening today, we know that everything is wrong. The time has come for us to have courage.
“We have signed into AFCTA and I believe what will give us an edge is to have a competitive environment. Our industries must be able to produce things that will compete favourably to other products in Africa but we are not in that position today. Even our citizens who have capital would rather relocate to Ghana and produce what they want to sell and bring it to Nigeria,” he said further.
Continuing, Mr Lawan said, “If we went wrong with the privatization of discos and Gencos, the time has come to look into it in the interest of our country. Definitely something is not working right. This round table is an idea of the senate that we should come together, talk amongst ourselves, ours is of course legislative intervention but we are also part of government. Whatever that is required to support the executive to amend the power sector reform, we are prepared to do that.”
Concluding, the Senate President said, “We owe this country obligation to provide employment opportunities for our teeming population. I think this round table at least is an opportunity to come up with measurable roadmaps to take the power sector to the next level.
“I believe that we have to declare a state of emergency on power and courageous decisions must be taken by government. I believe that this is one interaction that will not disappear after this session we want to take appropriate actions.”
