Senate sets to start power probe today tuesday
The Senate will on Tuesday begin a probe of the Nigerian power sector from 1999 till date.
The probe will cover the regimes of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the late Umaru Yar’Adua and former President Goodluck Jonathan.
The Senator Abubakar Kyari-led Senate Ad- Hoc Committee on Power, inaugurated by the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, about two weeks ago, made its plans public in a statement in Abuja, on Monday.
The Clerk of the Committee on Power, Mr. Cletus Ojabo, who signed the statement, said the probe would be in form of investigative hearing and interactive session with key stakeholders of the sector for the period under review.
He said, “The investigation will centre on funds appropriated for the power sector since 1999 to the point of unbundling of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria and all matters connected therewith.”
It will be recalled that Saraki had at the inauguration of the committee asked it to conduct a comprehensive probe of questionable practices in the power sector during the period under review.
Saraki expressed sadness that the continued absence of regular power supply in spite of the huge investments in the sector was denying the nation the desired development.
In response, the Committee chairman, Abubakar Kyari, assured the Senate that the committee would ensure that a thorough job was done for the benefit of Nigerians.
Kyari explained that a careful look at the entire power value chain comprising of generation, transmission and distribution required a policy review in order for Nigerians to fully benefit from it.
He said, “The abysmal performance of the generation segment is no longer news in view of the current deteriorating power supply which hovers around 4,600MW for a population of over 170 million people, despite the huge resources committed into it.
“This, compared with our contemporaries, is highly regrettable. No wonder so many companies have relocated from the shores of this nation, due to increasing cost of production.”