*Nebo targets 8 major cities for steady power
President of Good Governance Initiative(GGI) and Chief Executive Officer of
Blue Diamond Logistics, Mr Festus Mbisiogu, has enjoined Nigerians and other major stakeholders in the Power sector, to rally round the Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, to ensure that Nigeria achieves steady power supply before 2015.
Mbisiogu, whose GGI is championing the course for sustainable energy, spoke recently in an interview with Daily Review.
He said Nigeria would record tremendous economic growth and industrialization, if she achieves steady power supply.
He decried Nigerian government poor engagement with Diasporan Nigerians, even as he lauded President Goodluck Jonathan for his recent visit to China and the approval of a Consular office in Guangzhou.
He said: “There are so many successful Nigerians out there in many countries that are helping to build the economies of these developed and advanced countries. Many of them do not come home; many have not come home , but with the recent Nigeria Business Forum in China organized by President Jonathan, there are willing Nigerian Industrialists and entrepreneurs ready to come home. But the problem is unsteady power.
Mbisiogu said activities in his industries have stalled because of unsteady power. He said: “I remember when the federal government throughout the State Minister for Trade, Sam Ortom pleaded with Nigerian in China to repatriate their fund back home. I heeded to that call and after investing million of dollars the industry could not be powered for four months and I had toI spend a lot of money again in buying diesel and fuel.”
He said: “If steady power is not urgently handled, this historical business forum organizing by federal government will be a mirage as no serious investor will like to invest under the present condition that this sector is passing through.”
He posited that one of the best ways to ensure this is to give a deadline to those who have won various bids in the power strains formation of the government.
“It goes beyond winning the bids and paying the necessary fees. We have seen this in the past over and over again and yet nothing has happened. So we are saying that government should set a timeline for these investors as to when they will deliver steady power to Nigerians. They should sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with government so that we can hold them accountable and if they don’t deliver, appropriate sanctions and punishment should be meted out to them. In this way we can monitor their activities so that they do not fool us again as they have been doing.”
Meanwhile, Prof Nebo has disclosed that his ministry is planning to ensure that eight major industrial cities have 24-hour steady power by the end of this year. He said this recently in Lagos during an interactive session with stakeholders.
According to him, the cities include Lagos, Onitsha, Kaduna, Enugu, Port-Harcourt, Kano and Abuja.
He revealed that this is the first phase in a series of plans to ensure that Nigerians enjoy stable power before the end of 2015.