The Coalition for Affordable and Regular Electricity (CARE), Oyo state chapter, Friday called for re-nationalisation of the country’s power sector to be managed and controlled by elected representatives of workers and consumers.
CARE, in a statement jointly signed by its convener, Akinbodunshe Shadrack, and the co-convener, Comrade Ayodeji Adigun, faulted the take-over of one of the largest investors in Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBDEC) by the Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON).
The statement read in part, “The take-over by AMCON has further shown that none of the challenges and difficulties faced by the sector either today or prior to the privatisation exercise can ever be resolved on the basis of privatisation.
“Taking a look at this development and the reported factors responsible for the take-over shows very clearly that the privitisation of the power sector in the first instance is a fraudulent arrangement designed for the exploitation of the general public not to reposition the power sector.
It read further, “Just like the National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) which hardly protects the rights and interests of electricity consumers, but readily promotes the profit first and the interests of DisCos, the AMCON- controlled management of IBDEC will continue with the regime of exploitation and poor service of the previous management.
“It is in the light of this background we reiterate our call for the re-nationalisation of the power sector, but under a democratic control of elected representatives of the workers in the sector and electricity consumers at all levels from the national to the ward levels. This is the best way to safeguard the sector after such re-nationalisation from the kind of corruption and mismanagement that were the features of the former NEPA.”
