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Tag: PHCN

  • PHCN seeks SSS, police, intervention on equipment destruction

    PHCN seeks SSS, police, intervention on equipment destruction

    • Union threatens strike over severance package

    The Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) has urged  members of the State Security Service, Police and other law enforcement agencies to help tackle the issue of vandalisation of its equipment.

    Speaking at a Customers’ Parliament Forum in Lagos, the Chief Executive officer, Mr Oladele Amoda said the call became necessary to end acts of vandalism and further boost power supply in the country.

    Amoda said the cost of replacing vandalised materials is unbearable, adding that its runs into several millions of naira.

    He said the socio-economic effect of vandalism was negative, because it results in throwning the communities into darkness.

    He said: ‘We spent millions of naira to replace the vandalised equipment; this amount would have been better expended on new projects for the customers.’’

    He advised Community Development Associations, and other well meaning community members to be alert and assist in curbing vandalism of electrical equipment within their localities.

    He said the forum was an avenue for various customers to express their mind on how to improve service delivery and to intimate them of the challenges confronting the zone.

    The PHCN boss said that the forum would create enabling environment to appeal to customers on ways to protect government equipment, adding that the agency is putting measures in place to improve electricity supply and socio=economic activties in the country.

    “We are working towards ensuring distributing 20-hour electricity supply daily to our customers by December, and to 22-hours in January, said, adding that funding is the major problem preventing the government from providing regualr power to people.

    He explained that in the current Multi Year Tariff Order 2 (MYTO 2), customers are expected to have metres installed at their premises free.

    Meanwhile, the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), has threatened to stage a nationwide protest if payment of PHCN workers’ severance package is not implemented by the government.

    The Chairman, Lagos Chapter of NUEE, Adeleke Ibrahim, told the News Agency of Nigeria yesterday in Lagos, that the union has given an ultimatum of end of July.

    Ibrahim said that the payment has suffered setbacks due to the inability of the Federal Ministry of Power to put their records straight. He however advised the committees and government agencies saddled with the computation of the workers’ severance package to expedite action and ensure they were paid on time.

    Ibrahim said the union will resist any further delay in payment of the severance package as from the end of this month.

    “At the end of this month, if nothing is done, we will come out as usual and Nigerians will now know who is who. We are not pretending over that,’’ he said, adding that the workers have waited long enough since for the severance package to be paid.

    “Our members keep worrying us that the money is being delayed,” he said, urging that government should fulfil its pledge to pay the workers by the end of July.

  • An economy of mounting agbana and aggravation

    An economy of mounting agbana and aggravation

    There is no better way to describe the economy induced for citizens by government’s incompetence, inefficiency, or nonchalance with respect to governance over the years than to borrow a Yoruba concept, agbana to describe it. Agbana refers to a spiritual state that is generally believed to be induced by others with the sole aim of preventing the victim of the affliction from becoming economically or financially buoyant to the point of being solvent, regardless of the size of the income that flows to the victim. The victim is spiritually manipulated to the point that he spends funds available to him or her in such a way that there would be no surplus to enable him or her do any major investment capable of improving his or her financial position. The goal of inducers of agbana is to frustrate or demoralize the victim, to make him or her incapable of higher financial achievement. Although most people today believe that agbana is a pre-modern concept, but a close look at the poor organization of Nigeria’s infrastructure suggests that the government is an inducer of agbana for the citizenry.

    The first example of agbana pertains to supply of energy for citizens and even institutions. Companies which manufacture products and in the process require electricity are forced to depend on diesel-powered generators to do so. Whenever such companies find out that they can hardly break even, they migrate to other West African countries. The citizen-rich or average-also requires electricity to live in a modern way. He or she needs light to see in the dark hours, to watch television, to pump water if and when there is water, to iron clothes, etc. Without any visa to migrate to other countries, the typical Nigerian has to buy generators, buy diesel to power the generators, and pay generator repairers, who also need to buy generator repair kits every month, to keep the generators going.

    Furthermore, the middle-class Nigerian needs to buy gadgets that one does not see in other countries: an alarm system to signal availability of electricity; another device that houses various colours of electric bulbs to indicate the presence of electricity on the electric cables that enter the house; another contrivance to indicate that the voltage of the electric current coming into the house is not over the 220 volts for which most of the household items were designed by their overseas manufacturers; inverters to store electricity for later use when the Power Holding Corporation of Nigeria does its hourly power rationing; automatic switch systems to change from public electricity supply system to the generator mode; and, of course, uncountable stabilizers attached to each electric or electronic gadget, from refrigerators to electric kettles. The not so lucky Nigerian has to stay alert to run in and out of his or her room to change from the electric mode to the generator mode, and this can be twenty times a day, depending on the whims of those in charge of distribution of electricity.

    As if this is not enough, any person living in the Nigerian space also needs to pay monthly bills to the PHCN. It does not matter if the citizen enjoys any supply of electricity from PHCN in the month for which he or she is billed. Any surprise that the average Nigerian looks rougher than citizens from neighbouring countries? Those who are broke by the middle of the month ignore the shame that going to work or appearing in public space in clothes that need to be ironed brings, shrugging their shoulders when they notice that people give them critical or querulous looks.

    The typical middle-class Nigerian also buys water from water merchants who dig private boreholes from which they supply water in ‘tankers’ to the financially above-average person. Economically below-average individuals buy their water from labourers who call themselves water vendors. Poor ones carry buckets of water from the neighbourhood water vending centre to his or her room before or after the day’s work.Generally, plates used for serving food at local restaurants are poorly rinsed because of scarcity or the cost of water. Any surprise that there is too much stench in public buses within and between cities? Generally, many citizens do not have enough water to have proper baths that are required in a tropical environment.

    The story is not different for citizens with cellphones today. All service providers in the country serve as inducers of agbana. Citizens buy recharge cards but they are unable to get any benefit from such cards. When they use the cards to make calls, the calls are aborted most of the time, usually leaving the message: “The number you are calling does not exist.” This happens when a wife calls her husband whose number she should know, unless she is insane. When a caller is lucky enough to get through, the transaction is cut midway into a sentence. The story is not over. The telephone service provider on the other side still sends a cryptic message: “The cost for your last call is so and so.” It does not matter if the parties on the line succeed in saying anything to each other. Any surprise that Nigerians are the loudest telephone users in Africa? Telephone users have been conditioned by sub-standard service to shout themselves hoarse, if they are to succeed in making any telephone conversation.

    We are at a point in which our public health experts and social-psychologists need to be encouraged to find out why the average life expectancy in Nigeria is 52, one of the lowest in the world. This short life span may not be caused only by poor nutrition and poor health care. It is more likely to owe so much to the psychological impact of a daily life that is filled with anxiety and frustration that the country’s decrepit infrastructure induces. The oversize temperamental outbursts of the average Nigerian in relation to other citizens in sub-Saharan Africa cannot be due to diet as some thinkers are wont to pontificate. Most West Africans eat more or less the same food: yam, cassava, plantain, and rice that form the staple of most Nigerians. The ubiquitous anger of the average Nigerian must have some connection to the aggravation that haunts the average Nigeria on a da-to-day basis on account of the country’s socio-fugal infrastructure.

    Apart from constitutions, the basic thing that joins citizens to their governments in most parts of the modern world is infrastructure. In Nigeria the government has been more efficient in giving reasons why the infrastructure is bad than it is in providing adequate facilities for citizens to lead a life that is life-affirming. There seems to be very little difference between the quality of public goods provided directly by the government, (such as roads) and services that have been privatized, such as telecommunication. The consequence is that the typical Nigerian is made to pay for services he or she does not enjoy, be it electricity or telephone. The distancebetween the citizen and the government in the country is likely to continue until the government accepts that some of the priorities of citizens must be part of its own priority.

  • PHCN begins prepaid metering

    PHCN begins prepaid metering

    Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) yesterday began the implementation of Credit Advance Payment for Metering Installation (CAMPI) to customers.

    The CAPMI was designed by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to fill the gap created by the old metering system as contained in the Multi-Year Tariff Order (MYTO) II in which inadequate funding of the programme led to shortage in the supply of the prepaid meters and the challenges of paying outrageous bills

    EKEDC Chief Executive Officer, Oladele Amoda, in a statement, said  CAPMI will ensure that customers of PHCN  get prepaid meters within 48 hours or 45 days.

    He said: “When a willing customer credits our account with N25,000 for single phase meter, he will get metered within 48 hours to a maximum of 45 days. This interval includes days of  inspections of where the meter will be installed by our technical staff, to avoid diversion, or hoarding.”

  • One injured in PHCN workers’ clash in Edo

    One person was injured yesterday in a clash between members of the Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Staff and the National Union of Electricity Employees.

    Both are workers’ unions in the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).

    The clash led to a blackout in some parts of Benin City, the Edo State capital and its environs as PHCN offices were locked.

    Customers, who visited the offices, were told that there was a strike.

    The clash between NUEE and SSAEAS occurred at the headquarters of the Benin Zone as members of SSAEAS insisted on resuming duty.

    Security was strengthened around the premises to prevent destruction of property as the office was locked by NUEE.

    Branch President of SSAEAS Chris Egunyanga said one of their members was injured while they prevented NUEE from locking the office.

    Egunyanga said they were not part of the issues NUEE has with the PHCN management.

    He said: “We don’t have any problem. Our sister union said it has issues with the management here. The members came here last Thursday, drove our members out of the office and told them not to come to work today.

    “On our part, we saw it as an affront and told them if they have issues, they can engage management but they should not involve our members. We are not part of the issue they have with the management. We want to work but they said we should not work.”

    NUEE’s General Secretary Joseph Ndem said the fracas ensued because SSAEAS stopped them from locking up the office.

    He accused the senior staff and management of holding secret meetings with the new investor without informing NUEE.

    PHCN’s Public Affairs Manager Babatunde Fadipe said the management would not interfere in the issue between both unions.

     

  • BPE to hand over distribution firms to investors soon

    The Bureau of Enterprises (BPE) will soon hand over the distribution companies to core investors that met the capital requirement.

    The companies include: Abuja Electricity Distribution Company Plc, Benin Electricity Distribution Company Plc and Eko Electricity Distribution Company Plc.

    Others are: Enugu Electricity Distribution Company Plc, Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company Plc, Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company Plc, Jos Electricity Distribution Company Plc, Kano Electricity Distribution Company, Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company Plc and Yola Electricity Distribution Company Plc.

    Speaking to The Nation, thhe Head of Media, Ministry of Power, Mr Timothy Oyedeji, said the payment of the 100 per cent capital requirement by the bidders was mandatory to ensure the successful privatisation of the power sector.

    The government, he said, was waiting for the successful bidding distribution and power generation firms to meet the 100 per cent capital regime.

    He said: ‘’Though the companies have paid 25 per cent of the capaital outlay, they are required to pay the remaining 75 per cent in line with the directives of BPE. When they pay the outstanding, the companies would be handed over to the bidders in the next couple of months.’’

    The BPE had announced the receipt of $335 million from the bidders for the generation and distribution firms last November.This followed a due dilligence process conducted on the distibution and generation power firms.

    The process included clearing the preffered bidders for the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) generation and distribution firms, ensuring that they have the capacity to do the job.

    Others are decision of the government to reach an aggreement with the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) to guarantee the cooperation of workers in the handing over process, and raising finance to pay the entitlements of the workers exiting PHCN.

  • Fed Govt to begin payment of PHCN exit workers next week

    Fed Govt to begin payment of PHCN exit workers next week

    The Federal Government will commence the severance payment of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) exit workers next week, the Director-General, Bureau of Public Enterprises ( BPE), Benjamin Dikki, has said.

    Dikki, spoke yesterday while receiving the Senate Committee on Privatization that visited the organisation as part of its oversight function.

    His words : “Presently, agreement has been reached with the workers on all aspects of the payment of the terminal benefits. Actual payment is expected to commence by mid-July.”

    The Minister of Power,  Prof Chinedu Nebo, had promised President GoodluckJonthan that the Ministry would have completed the payment before the end of June, 2013. But the Federal Government seemed to have shifted the commencement of payment scheduled to begin on June 17, to mid July.

    Dikki explained to the lawmakers that  a Committee under the Chairmanship of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Power, was set-up to drive the implementation of the agreement signed between the Federal Government and Labour in December, 2012. He said a technical -sub-committee was set up to determine the correct number of bona-fide staff and obtain their bio-data.

    He said the sub-committee will determine the  components of staff entitlements including severance, gratuity, pension and repatriation, among others.

    Dikki said the  Bureau was jointly managing the sale of the 10 National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) power plants with Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC), adding that in order to expose investors with the transactions, road shows were held in Lagos, London, Hong Kong and New York.

    “The road shows attracted a large number of potential investors. This is a clear indication of a global interest in the emerging Nigerian power market,” he said, adding that the deadline for the submission of Expression of Interest on the NIPP power plants, is July 19th, 2013.

    Continuing, he said, “the bidders were subsequently given 21st of March, 2013 as deadline for the payment of the initial 25 per cent of the purchase consideration. By the deadline, all the preferred bidders duly paid 25 per cent of the purchase consideration amounting to $387. 964 million and N20. 365 billion. The balance of the purchase consideration must be paid on or before 21st September, 2013.”

  • FG fails to pay PHCN workers’ severance package

    FG fails to pay PHCN workers’ severance package

    The Federal Government has reneged on its promise to complete the payment of the severance benefits of the staff of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) by the end of June 2013, it appeared yesterday.

    Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, had on April 22 told President Gooluck Jonathan at the banquet hall of the State House, Abuja that before the end of June, 2013, government would have completed the payment of PHCN severance benefits.

    Yesterday was the last working day of June, and as at press time, no PHCN worker had acknowledged any notice of payment. The ministry had promised to commence payment on June 17.

    The President of Nigeria Union of Electricity Employees, Comrade Mansur Musa, confirmed that none of the workers had received his or her severance benefits.

    He said the union had already added government’s failure to the so many times it had disappointed the country on various issues.

    Musa, however, vowed that the union would ask the ministry to explain why it reneged on its promise to President Jonathan that by the end of June, it would have completed payments to PHCN workers.

    His words: “They have not paid anybody. They have failed again. We will add this to their so many failures. We will ask them why they have failed.”

    Following the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) timeline for the privatization of PHCN entities, the Federal Government will hand over the successor companies to the investors upon completion of 100% payment in October.

    While the firms have already made 25 per cent initial payment, they expect government to pay off the workers before the payment of the balance of 75 per cent.

    On the other hand, the firms can only be handed over to the investors when all the workers have earned their severance benefits.

    But while giving an update on the payment process, the Senior Assistant Media to Prof. Chinedu Nebo, Kande Daniel, in a statement on Monday noted that the Implementation Committee for the Settlement of Entitlements of Workers of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria had commended the high level of cooperation of the workers, as the last few steps towards the payment of their benefits were taken.

    According to her, the Committee, which is headed by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Power, Ambassador Dr. Godknows Igali, had validated and cleared more than 43,400 workers, in readiness for payment of their benefits.

    The statement reads in part: “This equates to nearly 93 percent of the workforce in the electricity sector.

    “The Committee says it is still working on the records of the remaining staff to clarify various issues arising from their records.

    “Personnel whose records have passed the biometrics test have also been issued Benefit Statements, showing their expected terminal benefits. They are to make necessary corrections and return the statements to the Committee within one week.

    “Furthermore, in order to enable the workers to understand the process of computation better, Committee members have been on a sensitisation tour in the different geographical zones.

    “Members say the sensitisation tour has been useful, producing perfect feedbacks, as well as a high degree of accuracy and acceptability wherever they have gone to.

    “On receipt of the signed-off papers from workers across the country, the Committee is to begin warehousing the documents, and subsequent process of forwarding same to the Accountant-General of the Federation for payment.

    “The Committee for the Settlement of the Benefits of PHCN workers was set up by the Federal Government, and its membership includes representatives of the unions in the electricity industry, as well as Federal Government representatives, prominent among them, the Minister of Labour, the Accountant-General and Auditor-General of the Federation.

    “The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Power, Ambassador (Dr.) Godknows Igali, is the Chairman of the Committee.

    “ The Honourable Minister of Power, Professor Chinedu Nebo, had recently said that plans were on to pay the electricity workers’ entitlements beginning from June 17, subject to completion of all necessary documentation, as well as receipt of benefit statements from the workers.”

  • Nigeria: A sleeping giant in darkness

    Then, I was not born but history has it that by the time of Nigeria’s independence, the colonial masters had high expectations from the country they were leaving. It was predicted that we would become one of the leading economies in a few years and a force to reckon with in Africa after independence.

    Perhaps, revelling in its potential to be a great nation, Nigeria prides itself the “Giant of Africa”. I am not a believer in forecasting, but I know most forecasts are as a result of extensive research and analysis. Nevertheless, I would not have expected anything less than fact from scientific forecast.

    With such an overwhelming population, Nigeria is blessed with human resource. Then talk about the black gold – petroleum – one of the world’s most widely-used and expensive resources, was found in addition to favourable weather and welcoming temperature; we could not have wished for more blessing from God; we are blessed.

    With the reality of today, Nigeria seems to have moved many centuries in backward direction. The promising statistics of the late 50’s and 60’s have all become a myth. But where did we get it all wrong?

    In essence, there are so many aspects of our stagnant development in which we have terribly failed. I have chosen to dwell on the problem of electricity ravaging the nation. Since my childhood days, Nigerians have not enjoyed uninterrupted power supply; instead of improving and provide more turbine to generate more megawatts of electricity, the fact is that the nation’s total power output has gone worse. As a student, I am schooling in one of the hottest parts of the country and as a result, I’m not finding it easy to cope with heat. Michael Faraday would be laughing at us, for if the scientist were to be a Nigerian, we would not have built on this excellent invention.

    For many years now, Nigerians have been left to suffer the consequences of erratic power supply. We are socially, economically and industrially weakened because we do not have a stable power supply. Most people cannot cope with this again.

    If this was to be happening in the 60’s or 70’s when only a few countries could boast of stable power supply, it would have been better; the we-are-not-alone syndrome, which the government usually brings to bear whenever it is being criticised, would have been aptly. Alas, these are times when small countries such as Ghana have dwarfed the sluggish giant called Nigeria in the provision of power supply.

    It is unimaginable that for the past 52 years, we have not been able to achieve an uninterrupted power supply. Ours is the case of one step forward and two steps backwards. Every successive government puts up elaborate plans on reviving our comatose power sector but efforts end up in futility and most times, the situation is left to go worse than before.

    Recently, when our power generation dropped from 4,517 megawatts to 3,443 megawatts, government officials were everywhere, begging us that the situation would be fixed. But how many megawatts of electricity are we talking about here? It should be a shame to us that Narita Airport in Japan generates about 6,000megawatts for its operation. This figure is above the useless 4,517 being celebrated by the government.

    Our government most times claims not to have enough funds but the fact is that most of these countries that now have stable electricity do not posses half of the resources at our beck and call.

    However, I won’t be a critic without appraising some of the bold steps taken by the government to save the situation such as the recent privatisation of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN). We must also explore other electricity-generating means. Other countries use wind turbines, solar electricity and more recently, nuclear reactor.

    Furthermore, the Federal Government should relax the constitutional provisions barring federating states from generating their electricity. It is really not going to work that just a company controls the electricity supply of a vast country like Nigeria. Let states come up with their own plan to reduce pressure on PHCN. Finally, the government and corporate bodies should invest in human resource, which is abundant in Nigeria. We have able youths across the country; these are the ones who will work for change since the future of their motherland dangles on balance.

    •Sarat is 200-Level Applied Chemistry, UDU, Sokoto

     

  • ‘PHCN workers to receive severance pay soon’

    ‘PHCN workers to receive severance pay soon’

    Senior Staff of Allied and Electricity Corporation (SSAEC) on Tuesday confirmed that the 54,000 workers in the electricity sector would soon receive their severance pay.

    The SSAEC President, Mr. Bede Opara, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the Federal Government and labour had reached an agreement on payment of the workers entitlements.

    Opara did not disclose the total sum that would be paid to the workers.

    ”The total amount cannot be mentioned now because lot of things had happened. Many people had retired and some of the workers had changed department so the money that will be paid has also been affected.

    ”Labour and government are contented with whatever that will be paid to the workers if the government implement as agreed, there will be no problem.”

    The unionist said that labour had agreed with the government that as soon as the money was paid, the investors would take over the plants.

    Opara said that the ongoing verification exercise in the PHCN would be concluded on June 29 since the workers had gone through their pay advice, verified and signed it.

    He noted that if there were lapses, such as omission of names, the verification would be extended to ensure that everybody was captured.

    The union president also said that the issue of casual workers had been cleared as they had been verified to ensure that they got their money.

    He also said that the workers had contacted different Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) that would handle the money.

  • PHCN assets: BPE to penalise defaulting investors

    PHCN assets: BPE to penalise defaulting investors

    •New owners to take over in October

    Any new investor in the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) that is unable to pay the 75 per cent bid balance would be penalised.

    Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Mr. Benjamin Dikki, who disclosed this in Lagos, also said that the new investors are expected to fully take over in October this year after paying the balance of 75 per cent bid.

    The investors in the PHCN successor companies had earlier made the mandatory 25 per cent payment.

    Dikki, who spoke during a television programme, however, expressed the confidence that all the investors were serious businessmen who have the required financial muscle to pay the bid price.

    Head, Public Communications, Mr. Chigbo Anichebe made this disclosure in a statement yesterday.

    He also allayed fears of monopoly by the investors, saying that the necessary framework and institutional checks had been put in place to regulate their activities and appropriate pricing.

    The BPE boss appealed that the investors be given time to increase capacity.

    He said: “They (investors) will after take over, re-tool and bring in new machinery like turbines, which are not easily bought off the shelf to put power on proper footing”.

    Besides, he said  the investors would need time to re-tool after take over and between two- three years to bring in the required machinery after which the country would witness increased and steady power supply.

    Dikki  assured Nigerians that power supply in the country will improve when the private investors take over. He expressed confidence that the introduction of sound maintenance culture would ensure that the current installed capacity of 6000 megawatts is exploited and put on the national grid. He stressed that that alone would stabilise power supply.

    Dikki who also spoke on agriculture and transportation sectors in the country, said the Bureau was working in tandem with the transformation agenda of the present administration to transform the two sectors through the privatisation of the Abuja Securities and Commodity Exchange (ASCE) and the setting up of a regulatory body in the transport sector.