Gbajabiamila laments poor power sector, seeks laws to improve efficiency

Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker of the House of Representatives, has bemoaned the appalling state of the power sector which has crippled significant sectors of the economy.

Gbajabiamila made the observation when he declared open a public hearing on the Electric Power Sector Reform Act (Amendment) Bill organised by the House Committee on Power in Abuja on Tuesday.

The bill was for an Act to establish Nigerian Institution of Power Engineers (NIPEN).

The speaker tasked the Federal Government on the need to ensure that the power sector performs optimally to stimulate the economy.

“Every Nigerian understands that the electric power sector in Nigeria is not performing optimally.

“Most people recognise that a situation where we cannot expect twenty-four-hour electricity in our cities and many rural areas remain wholly disconnected from the benefits of access to electricity is unacceptable.

“We all, for the most part, agree that it is the responsibility of the government to do something about this situation,” he said.

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He noted that the Electric Power Sector Reform Act, 2005 was a substantial piece of legislation and remained the most significant statutory reform of the power sector in Nigeria for a generation.

“When it was written and passed into law, it was intended that the provisions of the Act would establish a new framework for optimal public-private sector collaboration to accelerate development in the power sector and promote efficiency across the power sector value chain.

“The extent to which these expectations have been met is one of the many issues in contention.

“Answering the question of what needs to be done to improve the Act so that it serves the best purposes of our country is the reason we have gathered here in this public hearing,” he added.

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