Stakeholders in the nation’s power-sector have expressed divergent views over the sack of the Management of the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) by President Muhammadu Buhari.
The sack of the management of the Distribution Company follows an ongoing strike by the Nigerian Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) which has kept the Federal Capital Territory and adjoining states in total blackout in the last two days.
The removal of the AEDC management was revealed in a statement iby Ofem Uket, media aide to the Minister of State for Power, Jeddy Agba.
The statement by the presidency reads in part;
“The presidential directives as conveyed also directed the Bureau of Public Enterprises to set up a new management team of the AEDC.
“In a memorandum of understanding (MoU), jointly signed by the minister of state for power Goddy Jedy Agba, the Chairman, Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Sanusi Garba, Director General , Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Alex Okoli, Comrade Joe Ajaero on behalf of the union, the Federal Government ordered the suspension of the strike (and asked to be) given 21 days within which the outstanding emoluments and entitlements of staff will be paid.”
The striking workers are said to be protesting unpaid allowances, salaries and unremitted pension deductions.
Besides the FCT, other regions affected by the blackout include Nasarawa, Kogi, parts of Edo, Niger and Kaduna States under the coverage of the AEDC.
Meanwhile, stakeholders in the power sector have expressed divergent views over the development.
Energy expert, Prof. Wumi Iledare, in his reaction said the decision was difficult to comprehend when viewed against the background that the firm was registered under the Companies and Allied Matters Act.
He said the government must revisit the Electricity Supply Act of 2005, stressing that the foundation of the sector remains shaky, insisting that what the current administration just did has “implications for the electric power market structure.”
In a similar vein, former Chairman of NERC, Sam Amadi, maintained that the President has no powers under the Electric Power Sector Reform Act to sack the board of a private electricity company that the government has a minority share.
He clarified that it is the shareholders that could meet and dissolve the board, adding that another entity that could sack the board for violation of extant rules is the NERC.
But a legal practitioner and consumer advocate, Kunle Olubiyo, disagreed and expressed contrary view.
He applauded the move by the Federal Government, saying that the action was a step in the right direction.
He said, “It is a welcome development and a right step in the right direction.”
