Omisore Commends FG for improved power supply

The former Deputy Gov. of Osun, Sen. Iyiola Omisore, on Monday stressed the need for constant power supply in the country for sustainable development.

Omisore, who said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja, expressed delight at improved electricity supply in the country.

He commended the Federal Government for making “profound changes in the way electricity is being generated, distributed and consumed”.

Omisore said constant power supply was synonymous to a chain of progress in the development of any nation.

“The moment you get power supply, everything goes right; the cost of production goes down and the workers go back to work.

“More so, employment will be generated in million folds; restiveness will be arrested and peace will be guaranteed,” he said.

He said that there was no way Nigeria could attain the goal of reducing hunger, check insecurity and ensure meaningful development without constant power supply.

Omisore called for “institutions that will promote accountability and ensure that the right tools and policies are scaled up and applied for development”.

He commended the Jonathan administration for demonstrating the political will to improve governance as exemplified in its various reform policies.

“All efforts toward sustainable development will be in vain if government cannot provide stability and adequate source of income generation for its teeming population,” Omisore

He said that more than 15 energy projects initiated by President Goodluck Jonathan were in various stages of completion.

“The hydro, thermal, coal and mixed hydro generation are all in various stages of privatisation while the new coal concession for coal power is being put in place,” he said.

Omisore expressed the hope that Nigeria should be in the neighbourhood of 14,000 mega watts by 2014.

“The president is doing so much in power generation and distribution; our transmission lines today are being improved,” he said.

He urged Nigerians to exercise patience with the Federal Government in the implementation of its energy policy.

Omisore explained that the gestation period of one mega watt would take between three and seven years to mature.

He said that though the decay in energy sector did not start during the tenure of the current administration, President Jonathan had put in his best to revolutionise the sector.

Omisore, who reminded Nigerians that the task of correcting the ills in the energy sector was a collective responsibility, urged them to support government for the success of the programme.

“The development of this country is everyone’s responsibility; the time has come for us to unlock the power of partnerships.

“We must work across all sectors and tear barriers that sometimes make developmental efforts uncoordinated and inefficient.’’