Electricity workers issue minister two-week ultimatum

.Electricity workers issue minister two-week ultimatum to address challenges

The National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) has given the new Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, two weeks to address lingering issues or be ready to deploy officers in the Office of National Security Adviser (ONSA) to run the power sector.

Acting General Secretary of NUEE, Dominic Igwebike, expressed worry at the alleged public display of ignorance by the newly-appointed Minister of Power since his assumption of office, saying he has not deemed it necessary to reach out to critical stakeholders in the sector to engender effective collaboration, optimise productivity and increase power output.

The workers alleged that Adelabu, since his assumption, has embarked on a media frenzy to misinform Nigerians and openly threaten workers in the sector.

The union alleged that the minister has decided to play to the gallery like some of his predecessors by promising thousands of megawatts without any clear roadmap.

NUEE said that Adelabu should be properly guided to prevent a recurrence of system collapse that was experienced in the last few days.

According to the unionists, it is on record that the power sector had not experienced any system collapse in about 400 days due to the industrious and hard-working members that make up the workforce.

The electricity workers urged the minister to be concerned about outstanding issues like the refusal to issue prepaid meters to Nigerians who are being compelled to pay crazy bills, less than 4,500MW output of
electricity among others.

NUEE said Adelabu should also focus on the refusal of most generation companies (GenCos) led by Egbin Power Plc who they alleged have flagrantly disobeyed all extant labour laws since taking over in November 2013 as well as non-payment of 16 months arrears arising from disengagement of workers.

To achieve improvement and rejuvenate the power sector, the workers said it is important the Federal Government put round pegs in round holes rather than appointing individuals for political consideration.