THE NEWS NIGERIA
Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola, Minister of Works and Housing, has explained how Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Candidate will fix Nigeria’ s power crisis if elected in 2023. He x-rayed the Asiwaju Framework for Power and Energy Reform as contained in his manifesto. This, as Fashola put it, “is well articulated in the APC tradition of identifying issues and proposing solutions; on pages 30 to 32 of Asiwaju’s Action Plan for a Better Nigeria titled Renewed Hope 2023.”
First, according to Fashola, Tinubu recognises at page 30 of the plan that the problems cannot be solved overnight. “He offers to eliminate the losses between generation and distribution by addressing the transmission problems which the current Presidential Power Initiative has started. He connects with the problem of end users relating to provision of meters and offers support for domestic manufacturing on page 31.This is more than a paper policy. It speaks to many things including Asiwaju’s known commitment for standing with people in need. It tells those who are victims of estimated billing that they are not invisible…”
Fashola said further: “Asiwaju’s plan will therefore support meter asset providers. On page 31, there is a renewable energy plan in the Asiwaju Framework, and this is the driver for rapid deployment of mini grids that I spoke about earlier, especially solar energy which he formally addresses as a point of focus.
Apart from the employment and entrepreneurship benefits for suppliers, installers and manufacturers, this brings Nigeria into the centre of global energy discussion and opens up a new market for carbon credits which is estimated at $261 Billion global, $50 Billion for Africa and $ 2.64 annually for Nigeria.
The low hanging fruits are the number of generator power plants that we can replace with solar and the renewables.
The plan on Page 32 commits to a “Nigeria First Power Policy” which is very important. It simply means our power development will not subordinate our energy needs to global energy policies that do not take into consideration the energy inequality between developed and developing nations.
Rural dwellers are visible to Asiwaju as his plan clearly identifies them and their needs on Page 32. He offers incentives and change of policies that encumber investment for power in rural areas and seeks to mobilise local capacities in our universities and polytechnics to lead the research that unlocks delivery of power to rural areas.”
