Editorial: Electricity; Paying More For Darkness Print Email LAST UPDATED ON 01 AUGUST 2013 HITS: 213 The increased electricity tariff by the Federal Government, under the new tariff regime otherwise known as Multi-Year Tariff Order (MYTO), without any corresponding improvement in power supply to warrant such an increase, is unfair to Nigerians and provocative. It is inappropriate, insensitive and anti-people; a sad commentary on Nigeria, coming amid the recent disclosure by Power Minister, Chinedu Nebo that as many as 120 million Nigerians (out of a population of 160) are currently without electricity. This is totally unacceptable. It is unfortunate that government’s action and inaction are daily worsening rather than improving the people’s plight. Before Mr. President comes up with the usual excuse that the problems in the power sector predate his presidency, may we quickly remind him that he has had ample time to improve the situation, but he has failed to do so. Nigerians need a respite from the seemingly unbearable economic conditions in the country.There is no justifiable basis for consumers to pay for what is not available. There is also no justification for compounding the people’s poverty and misery, by imposing on them an increased tariff to compensate an inefficient system. At our pathetic level of underdevelopment, hiking tariffs without a corresponding increase in power supply is immoral. That is official daylight robbery, all in the name of transforming the power sector. Government ought to be worried about public summation that the greatest evidence of leadership failure is the embarrassing state of public power supply. In short, what Nigeria is witnessing is a crisis in the power sector, created by failure of governance. Besides, this would be the umpteenth time that government has hiked electricity tariff. As Nigerians bemoan the high electricity charges, one fundamental question being asked is: why against all entreaties, should the federal government, through its agencies like the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), increase electricity tariff by over 100% without any commensurate increase in power supply. The MYTO, which was prepared by NERC, showed that there would be increases in electricity tariff every year till 2016. The tariff schedule showed that consumers would have to pay higher on two fronts. One, the fixed cost will go up every year. The energy cost or cost per kilowatt-hour of electricity will also increase. In defence of the customers, the Nigerian Labor Congress (NLC) had accused NERC of aiding and abetting the exploitation of Nigerians by charging them higher tariff when electricity supply remains erratic. The labor union said NERC was part of the challenges hindering the successful transformation of the nation’s power sector, through its inconsistent and contradictory regulatory policies. In a swift reaction, NERC Managing Director, Dr. Sam Amadi, at a briefing in Abuja last week, insisted that the new tariffs were justified under MYTO. Amadi said Nigerians had been educated about the new tariffs, which would run till 2016. It is worth pointing out that Amadi’s latest submission contradicts his own earlier statements on the issue. In May this year, Amadi said the new tariff regime would only witness 11 to 12% increment in charges, especially for R.2 Consumers. (Residences with single-face meters). But last week, he backtracked, saying the new tariffs, which now affects all consumers, was fair and reasonable; arguing that the increase is necessary to attract private investors. To which end, houses of two one-bedroom apartments and a main 3-bedroom apartment in Lagos, were served a bill of N90, 000. This is insane. The burden on the citizens is enormous, as the same citizens have to also battle with the scarcity and high cost of kerosene, diesel and cooking gas. Amadi’s charge to the electricity companies to “ensure improved service delivery to customers” cannot be guaranteed since nothing has changed in terms of the infrastructure and mode of operation of these companies. It certainly requires no magic to give Nigerians constant power supply. The excuses from government for the dismal performance can sometimes be as unpardonably hare-brained as they are laughable. When power failure is not attributed to a shortage of gas to the thermal stations, it is some snake holed up within the Kainji dam turbine. Lately, new-on- the- job Minister Nebo said that outage in Bayelsa State was caused, in his words, by “a huge tree [that] fell on the transmission tower and shattered it up to the foundation.” Elsewhere, it is rainstorm that stands accused of bringing down transmission towers, or a systems collapse, or a “cascade trip” (whatever that means) or hoodlums vandalizing power equipment. Underlying all these stories are what any right thinking person will discern as contempt for the people that government is supposed to serve. Contempt for the customer public is obvious because, even as power supply remains persistently erratic, electricity tariff remains consistently on the increase and hapless Nigerians are arm-twisted to pay not for light but for darkness. The logic of hiking electricity tariff as a precondition for investor participation is unjustifiable and certainly not in the national interest. If the increase is aimed at pleasing investors, it is certainly injurious to the interest of Nigerians, as it amounts to subjecting them to more suffering, indeed double jeopardy. People are not supposed to pay for what is non-existent. The ideal thing is to work towards putting power first. Thereafter, it would be clear to all and sundry that there is a change that could warrant tariff increase. As it is, there is no guarantee that after subjecting consumers to high charges, there would be commensurate increase in power supply. Although, there have been efforts towards privatization, unbundling of the PHCN, and implementation of the MYTO, among others, these have not crystallized into improved electricity supply, which is all Nigerians want. In his inaugural address on May 29, 2011, the president promised that transformation would be achieved in all the critical sectors, that the power sector reform was at the heart of his administration’s industrialization strategy and that he would continue to fight for electricity to be available to all citizens. At that time, power generation was about 3,500 MW. Two years after, and billions of naira voted for it, this miserable figure has increased by no more than an even more miserable 1,000 MW. It would take a miracle to achieve the transformation of a country in perpetual black-out. Meantime, Nigerians have to pay for the failure of the system. In real terms, citizens are being victimized and treated with disdain as they are literally obliged to pay more for darkness. It is fraudulent to make people pay for capacity, rather than what is produced or consumed. It is important to state that President Goodluck Jonathan must deliver on his critical promises to transform the power sector for history to judge him fairly
Posted on: Fri, 02 Aug 2013 18:52:07 +0000
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