NLC Opposes Releasing N38bn to Discos for Meters

• NLC Opposes Releasing N38bn to Discos for Meters

The Nigeria Labour Congress has criticised the moves by the Federal Government to release N8bn to the electricity distribution companies to procure prepaid meters.

The NLC reaffirmed its call to the Federal Government to revisit the process of the privatisation of the power sector carried out by the Goodluck Jonathan administration.

The President of the NLC, Mr. Ayuba Wabba, also lamented that the current administration had committed N660bn as intervention funds in the power sector in the last two years without commensurate improvement in power supply.

Wabba wondered why the Federal Government would still commit N38bn of public funds as bailout to the electricity distribution companies, which were almost becoming comatose, to procure meters.

The NLC’s president made the comment while speaking at the inauguration of the newly elected leaders of LCAN in Abuja on Tuesday.

He said that the problem of the power sector had nothing to do with lack of resources as the government had committed N11tn to the power sector reforms without achieving the objective of providing stable power supply in the country.

Wabba said, “One of the things affecting our country today is the issue of accountability. Every other issue can directly or indirectly be linked with the issue of good governance. The state level is even worst and that is our challenge.”

He said that if the electricity firms lacked the capacity to deliver, then the process should be reversed, stressing that it would not be too late to reverse the process.