Vanguard, MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019 —41 <strong>Economy</strong> <strong>bleeds</strong> <strong>as</strong> <strong>power</strong> <strong>system</strong> <strong>collapses</strong> Continues from Page 5 must be strictly monitored to ensure revenues collected for electricity supplied is remitted. This is the link to infr<strong>as</strong>tructure development and future investment along the <strong>power</strong> chain.” Labour In a telephone inter view with Vanguard, yesterday, General Secretary, National Union of Electricity Employees, NUEE, Mr. Joe Ajaero, said: “The sector w<strong>as</strong> privatised wrongly and that is the re<strong>as</strong>on for these crisis. The generation companies privatised have not moved beyond the capacity given to them. They are not maintaining the installed capacity giving to them <strong>as</strong> at take over. They have not built additional unit at the <strong>power</strong> unit in the station. “TCN h<strong>as</strong> been able to wheel what they have. As it stands, the DISCOs cannot wheel more than expected because of weak distribution transformers and lines. “The <strong>system</strong> is not working or refused to work. The Federal Government h<strong>as</strong> issued intervention funds and yet not to delivering to expectations. The sector needs to be reviewed. If the quality is working, we will continue and if not working, we would review it. However, after the review, every stakeholder should come up with ide<strong>as</strong> on how to make it work.” However, Minister of Works, Power and Housing, Babatunde F<strong>as</strong>hola, said yesterday that maintenance w<strong>as</strong> ongoing and that the situation would improve on completion. Senior Special Assistant to the Minister, Media, Hakeem Bello, told Vanguard l<strong>as</strong>t night that part of the maintenance on TCN facility had been completed, resulting in improvement in supply. According to him, work w<strong>as</strong> ongoing to complete the remaining segment of the work. Others Other important stakeholders, including the NNPC and Minister of Power, Works, and Housing, Babatunde F<strong>as</strong>hola, did not make any comments yesterday. Impact Reacting to the development, yesterday, Director General, Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industry, LCCI, Mr Muda Yusuf, said the poor state of <strong>power</strong> h<strong>as</strong> affected the nation’s economy in many ways. He said: “Most of the members have all resorted to alternative sources of <strong>power</strong> supply. Some of the big companies have completely cut off from the national grid to private g<strong>as</strong> supply <strong>as</strong> means of providing <strong>power</strong> for their operation. “This is because some of their operations and productions cannot work with the epileptic <strong>power</strong> we are experiencing in the country. All the multinationals are generating their <strong>power</strong> themselves right now. “Those that suffer most now are the SMEs and the micro operators that rely on generators, more so now that the fuel is not even available, their problems have been compounded. “I think something h<strong>as</strong> to be done if this country is to move forward. We cannot continue this way <strong>as</strong> a nation. Where on earth have you seen manufacturers running generators <strong>as</strong> major source of energy supply? Government should see to the plight of the manufacturers in the country before all the industries relocate to Ghana <strong>as</strong> we are experiencing today.” The President of Manufacturing Association of Nigeria, MAN, Mr. Frank Jacobs, also stated that there h<strong>as</strong> been cut down in production, job losses, <strong>as</strong> well <strong>as</strong> outright closure of manufacturing concerns or relocation to other countries. He said: “When you are producing and <strong>power</strong> is taken unannounced, goods in line of production would be destroyed. As a result, many members of MAN have resorted to generating <strong>power</strong> privately and completely cut off their operations from the national grid. “Most companies, like CocaCola, Wempco, Nigeria Flour Mills and especially the multi nationals selfgenerate their <strong>power</strong>. They don’t rely on the national grid. And for the l<strong>as</strong>t three years, our study showed that our members spent averagely in a month N20.8 billion.” Apo transmission station fire Meanwhile, a major fire outbreak occured at the Apo transmission station in Abuja yesterday, which I have no regret joining APC —Senator Akpabio By Chioma Onuegbu UYO —The Senator representing Ikot Ekpene Senatorial district and former governor of Akwa Ibom state, Senator Godswill Akpabio h<strong>as</strong> said he h<strong>as</strong> no regrets for dumping his former party, the People’s Democratic Party, PDP and joining the All Progressives Congress, APC. Akpabio at his hometown, Essien Udim Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State, while fielding questions from newsmen after the burial of his nephew weekend, said if he were to take the decision today, he would go to the APC. He said he also had no regret for bringing Governor Udom Emmanuel <strong>as</strong> his successor, noting that what he did in 2015 w<strong>as</strong> to ensure that he brought somebody who w<strong>as</strong> presentable. His words: “I have no regret bringing Emmanuel. You know like I always say, in 2015, I w<strong>as</strong>n’t looking for a governor for Godswill, I w<strong>as</strong> looking for a governor for Akwa Ibom. So if Akwa Ibom is happy with him, why not? I will be satisfied. You Know it is always good that you bring out somebody who is presentable. “Even if you want to go to a football match, you must look for good players. So for me I don’t have any regret over Emmanuel. I pray that he does well for the state. And I also pray that God gives him the wisdom <strong>as</strong> long <strong>as</strong> he h<strong>as</strong> the opportunity to pilot the affairs of the state, he should do well for the happiness of our people. I have no regret at all. “I have no regret equally for my joining the APC. I have no single regret. If I were to take the decision today, I will go to the APC. I am happy in the APC.” Akpabio, who dumped the PDP for the APC in 2018, dismissed speculations in some quarters that he would return to the PDP, describing such speculations <strong>as</strong> the handiwork of mischief makers. “Why are you people listening to mischief when I am getting entrenched in APC? I am very happy to be in APC. I am excited and I thank God that the President won the election resoundingly all over the country.” He expressed confidence that he would reclaim his stolen mandate in the Tribunal and return to Senate, saying, “I am a believer in the Lord. That is why I believe in due process and that is why I Fire Power Demonstration —Nigerian Army vehicle Manufacturing Company displays their weapons during the Fire Power demonstrations at Jaji in Kaduna, yesterday. Photo: NAN. have taken the option of due process and said let’s go to the Tribunal and ensure that we fight for our right. There is no protest, no shouting. “And by the grace of God, I will succeed in the Tribunal and then I will continue in the Senate. But even if it is not on June 9th when my first term in the senate will terminate, any day at all that I succeed at the Tribunal, I will continue from there, because I do know and you know that I won the election. I have always said so, I never stopped saying it and I will never stop saying it because that is the truth. “But that is not the most may worsen the nation’s <strong>power</strong> situation. The Head, Corporate Communications, Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC), Mr. Oyebode Fadipe, stated: “Our technical team is right now working with the TCN engineers to see how to absorb the load on the 45MVA transformer that w<strong>as</strong> affected by the fire.” The Minister of Power Works and Housing, important thing. The re<strong>as</strong>on why I feel confident is because my tomorrow is greater than my today. Like I said today, we have only one opportunity to make our life better but tomorrow, we have three opportunities. You know we have three ‘O’s in tomorrow, but you have only one ‘O’ in today. And yesterday is gone, so you don’t have any single ‘O’ there.” On the perception that losing his reelection bid that his political career w<strong>as</strong> finished, Akpabio said: “If anybody expects that I will feel bad, I will never feel bad. Sometimes people don’t understand that life is full of ups and downs. Babatunde F<strong>as</strong>hola w<strong>as</strong> said to have remarked that: “I am aware of the Apo Fire incident which occurred today (Sunday) affecting the Transmission Transformer and our staff are at site & on ground. The fire h<strong>as</strong> been put out. Damages are being <strong>as</strong>sessed and plans underway to redistribute Power to communities served by the burnt/ damaged transformer at Apo Transmission Sub Station." Life is not a straight line. If it is a straight line, it means you are dead. “For me, I will always wish my people in Akwa Ibom well. I will always pray for Akwa Ibom State, and I will always work for Akwa Ibom till I die. I am already a senator, and I have been a governor for eight years and I have had the privilege of serving them <strong>as</strong> a commissioner. “I believe in peaceful politics and that is the re<strong>as</strong>on I chose the path of peace to also pursue any wrong that I feel that could have been done to me, not by Akwa Ibom people but done by the INEC,” Akpabio said. I w<strong>as</strong>n’t given any SUV by NSITF—Ngige By Johnbosco Agbakwuru A Minister BUJA—THE of Labour and Productivity, Dr. Chris Ngige, yesterday denied being given any SUV, describing the allegations by the Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, <strong>as</strong> cock and bull story. A source close to the Minister said: “The minister set up a nineman administrative panel with the approval of Mr. President. ‘’This panel deemed it necessary after the EFCC had submitted its report to the President and the ministry on the issue of missing N45 billion made by the government and private people. The panel w<strong>as</strong> to look into how N5 billion w<strong>as</strong> taken out one day without voucher. “If the N18 million will be spent in terms of sitting of the members of the administrative panel’s travels to the 12 regional offices of the agency through out Nigeria, it is then money well spent. “It w<strong>as</strong> not true that the minister received any c<strong>as</strong>h monetization or any SUV from the NSITF, rather when the Minister of State w<strong>as</strong> appointed to the ministry and there w<strong>as</strong> no vehicle for him to use <strong>as</strong> the previous vehicle to the late Minister of State w<strong>as</strong> damaged in an accident, the NSITF <strong>as</strong>sisted and loaned a vehicle to the ministry to be <strong>as</strong>signed to the office of the Minister of State for Labour. “Comrade Frank Kokori’s name w<strong>as</strong> never sent to the Presidency by the Minister of Labour for appointment of chairman in conformity with the act setting up the NSITF."
4—Vanguard, MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019
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