The chances of cancelling the privatizations of the power sector further dimmed yesterday as the Senate Committee on Privatisation has given indication that it may not work for now.
A statement in Abuja on Tuesday by Head of Public Communications at BPE, Mr. Alex Okoh said the committee expressed their displeasure at the deplorable situation in the sector when the members visited some privatised companies that were carved out from the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria.
Chairman of the committee, Senator Ben Bruce, also cautioned against calls for the reversal of the power sector privatisation in the country, saying that instead of cancellation, concerted efforts should be made by all stakeholders to address the crisis in the sector.
He said reversing the power sector privatisation would paint Nigeria as an unserious country which does not respect the sanctity of contractual agreements, thus scaring away potential investors.
Bruce who led other members of the committee to the Ikeja and Eko Distribution companies as well as the Egbin Generation Company for oversight function said the power sector was very crucial to the economic well-being of the country.
He noted that the on-going oversight visits had proved him wrong on his initial assumption that the privatisation process was wrong, adding that with the benefit of hindsight, he had seen that the crisis in the sector was the necessary outcome of the privatisation.
