Anti Power Discos Contracta Better Political Line For Atikulation By Hussaini Hussaini

A credit I must give to His Excellency, the former Vice
President of Nigeria, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar is for his several call
for the revocation of the bogus political arrangement entered by
the former President Jonathan’s Administration that sold out the
Power Holding Company of Nigeria, one of Nigeria’s prime assets to
some politicians in the name of contract entered between the
Federal Government and the Nigerian Distribution
Companies(Discos).

I am not against the privatisation in its entirety, but I’m
totally against the act of handing down the business of electricity
distribution almost free of charge to some few individuals that are
now exploiting the Nigerian masses.

Even though, President Buhari has to caution himself against
Atiku’s advice for fear of being instigated by Atiku to fight his
political enemies for him, I am seriously not happy with the Buhari
administration for their silence and palpable indifference to
redeem what is for the masses to the masses by following all legal
means.

The more annoying thing is that the supervising Minister of
power, Babatunde Fashola had recently announced that they are going
to issue out the remaining 40% shares of the Federal government in
these Discos to the private sector. This will bring a 100%
privatised power distribution in Nigeria.

By this announcement, one may rightfully guess that the Buhari
administration is not willing to revoke the contract allegedly
entered by the previous administration for President Jonathan’s
political ambition, but they further fortified it.

One may even nurse the fear that the current administration may
consciously or unconsciously also use the remaining 40% federal
government shares in these Discos for yet another political family
sharing at the collective expense of Nigerians.

One issue that should have prompt the immediate legal revocation
of the Jonathanian Discos contract is that the then government even
agreed to give these companies some subsidies in billions of Naira
(which they are still claiming in one of their recent publication).
Should we oppose subsidy in the petroleum industry and agree with
it in billions of Naira that will be given to these companies that
got our prime asset almost for free, that will be a double
standard! I intend to write extensively with legal authorities on
this issue, but I’m still trying to gather my facts and supporting
laws.

Now, coming back to my topic, it could have been better if Atiku
channeled his energy and resources towards selling this argument to
Nigerians as he sold the restructuring idea which Nigerians bought,
than wasting his time in conducting national census on which region
of Nigeria has more mud houses than the other.

This could have made many Nigerians and my humble self see the
Waziri of Adamawa as a repentant capitalist who sees reason why a
poor person should have better life without being subject of
exploitation.

Hussaini Hussaini is a legal Practitioner based in Abuja and can
be reached via [email protected]^[1]

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