Daily Watch – Strikes cause power sector losses, Lawmaker alleges petrol diversion to Benin

11th April 2016

  • Frequent industrial action by workers in the electricity supply industry has resulted in the loss of about N7.734 billion between 2014 and 2016, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has said. Fashola said that the huge revenue loss was arrived at after he conducted a snap survey of strikes embarked upon by workers in the sector between April 2014 and March 2016. He urged the workers to reconsider their resistance to private investors in the sector as well as their views of the investors as being exploitative.
  • The Delta State Government has signed an MoU with an American company, Alpha Energy and Electric Inc., for the generation of 500 Megawatts of electricity through a public-private partnership. This is part of its efforts to boost power generation in the state. State governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, urged the company to commence work as soon as possible and gave them the assurance of government’s support and the necessary investment friendly environment to enable the PPP project succeed.
  • Setonji David, the lawmaker representing Badagry II constituency at the Lagos state house of assembly, has said that residents of Badagry have noticed daily movement of tankers fully loaded with petrol, into the Republic of Benin. “Since the commencement of the current scarcity, fuel tankers fully loaded with PMS are being ferried to the neighbouring country, precisely Republic of Benin. A minimum of 50 tankers are being driven out of the country to Benin through Seme border in Badagry while our people are suffering untold hardship. A few fuel stations that sell in Badagry presently sell between N200 and N250 per litre.” David urged the government to compel the DPR, security agencies and Customs service to end the practice.