Senate pledges support to Nigerian electricity market

By Oke Peter
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Privatisation, Senator Ben Murray Bruce has pledged the commitment of the upper legislative chamber to resolving all crises bedeviling the nation’s power sector and restoring investors’ confidence in the sector.
He made the pledge yesterday in Kaduna when he led members of the Senate Committee on privatization on oversight visit to Kaduna Electricity Distribution Plc.
Senator Bruce disclosed that “the Senate is concern about the situation in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI), especially the widespread insinuation of the failure of the privatization of the power sector and shall work very hard to restore sanity in the sector as well as rekindle the confidence of all stakeholders in the market”.
He assured that his committee is not out to muscle the private investors out of business. “Contrary to that, we shall work with the private sector to revamp the sector in particular and the economy in general and create job opportunities to our teeming youth”, he asserted.
Earlier, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Kaduna Electric, Engineer Garba Haruna who was represented by the Chief Operating Officer of the Company, Mr. Major Bashkar appealed to the legislators to help in changing the mind-set of the electricity consuming public on the operations and expectations of the private sector driven power sector.
Recounting his experience in the Tata Electric of Delhi, India, Mr. Bashkar called for five years moratorium and support to the Discos to enable the market stabilise and have its bearings.
Meanwhile, the Senate committee on Privatisation has scheduled for January next year, a full fledge public hearing where all stakeholders in the nation’s power sector shall be invited to discuss and resolve all lingering issues in the sector.