The Committee Members during the visit to the Calabar Power Generation Company on Wednesday.
By Anietie Akpan
In a renewed effort to achieve steady power supply and boost the economy, the Federal House of Representatives has appealed to Nigerians including vandals to give priority attention to state owned infrastructure.
THE Chairman House of Representatives Committee on Power, Mr Victor Nwokolo, made the appeal in Calabar during a visit of the nine-man Committee to the Calabar Power Generation Company on Wednesday as part of their oversight function.
He said, “it is only in Nigeria where somebody would see an infrastructure built for common good with billions of naira and goes ahead to destroy it just to sell for a few naira”.
Nwokolo said the House of Representatives is working with the Federal Government to provide maximum power supply to consumers across the country occasioned by the premium placed on adequate power supply to keep the economy.
The Lawmaker stated that power has multiplier effect on the economy by boosting production and serving as catalyst in job creation and social development hence all hands must be on deck to ensure success.
“We have passed the Electricity Act 2023 this year which is a record time and that marks the significance placed in the power sector which demands that we support the Executive to do the work effectively in furthering the institutional and infrastructural development and sustainability in the power sector.
“At our own end, we are driving the process to meet expectations of the people and having come here, we are happy with the investments made by the Federal Government to resolve Nigeria’s power problem” , he said.
Excited by the level of facilities at the plant, Nwokolo said, “we have seen the spare parts and other components which can ensure there is no tripping down in power generation, so we pray the operators keep the flag flying”.
According to him, power generation companies are important because transmission and distribution companies depend on the electricity generated by the GenCos to sustain constant and optimum power supply.
The House of Representatives is on recess but Nwokolo who represents Nka East and Nka South Federal Constituency of Delta State said they had to sacrifice their holiday to carry out the visit because the Committee places premium importance on the improvement of power supply.
Equally speaking, the Managing Director, the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC), Mr Chiedu Ugbo confirmed that unlike other power stations, the Calabar Power Plant has full gas supply and produces 653 kilowatts of electricity which is distributed across the country.
“We have other power plants in Benin, Sapele, Warri and other places but the Calabar Power Plant operational efficiency is fantastic and the plant is well managed”
Government according to Ugbo, is looking into areas affecting the plant like gas supply, tariff and payment of suppliers and this has positioned the plant to deliver more power for distribution by the DisCos.