The Bureau for Public Enterprises (BPE) has strongly disagreed with the President/CEO of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote over his call for the Federal Government to reverse the November 1, 2013 privatisation of the power sector.
The BPE said the call was unhelpful as the privatization was done just three years ago.
The Acting Director General of BPE, Dr. Vincent Onome Akpotaire who stated this at the weekend while flagging off the metering projects for large power users in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Kogi, Nassarawa and Niger States said what the sector needed was support and not attempt to pull it down.
Akpotaire who observed that the sector existed for over 50 years under government management without any progress, said the new private owners should be given the support to succeed.
He noted that the agreement signed with the investors upon their acquisition of the power assets allowed that they take at least five years to invest in and stabilise their networks.
He said: “My take is that we need to evaluate statements before we make them. That is the point I think we should put across to Nigerians. We have put only about three years since the handover of the power sector to private investors.
“Before that, the power sector had existed for well over 50 years and in those 50 years, hardly much was achieved due to several factors and the decision to privatise was a well thought-out decision. In three years, the measurement of their performance is based on a five year index which is under their agreements and that measurement is not dependent only on the activities of the private investors alone but also on the tariff structure.
“You are all aware of controversies the tariff has thrown up and because of that, there is now a scale back in reviewing of the tariffs, one segment of the review has just been lost and for every review not done, there is a gap in the funding.”
Akpotaire who declined to rate the performance of the sector under private management explained that “our approach is not to determine what should be the pass mark, but to consider whether the issues of reduction of losses has been met, as of today we are just starting the issues and I am confident that in the next few years, most of the results as to performance will be better checked.”
He pointed out that he expected thoughts and expressions from business leaders like Dangote on the sector to be more about proffering solutions to its challenges and not stoking up pressure.
“What I expect is solution finding and not reversal of the privatisation. Best practices demand that this is the way to go. Even in countries as small as neighbouring Ghana, they have made attempt to privatise different sectors of their power sector.
“The concept is not the problem but the management of the outcome. We need our leaders to speak to the solution and not the problems,” he noted.
Also speaking at the event held at the FCT Archives and History Bureau, the Managing Director of the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC), Mr. Ernest Mupwaya disclosed that the utility firm has invested $1.8 million to procure and install the modern smart meters for 3,800 large users of electricity in its franchise areas of Abuja, Nasarawa, Kogi and Niger.
Mupwaya explained that the project is a major turning point in the company’s effort at reducing its collection losses.
