The Minister
of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, has told power
distribution firms across the country to improve on their service delivery or
be
ready to quit the sector.
Fashola handed
down the warning at the 11th monthly Power Sector and Stakeholders Meeting held
in Lagos yesterday.
“We all know
the issues around metering and billing. We must build that trust and confidence
that customers complains will be addressed. Without the customers and the
consumers, there is no business and I think that all of us in the public and
private sector must understand that. If you don’t have the skin and the
patience to serve, leave,” he warned.
He said
stakeholders must use this year to tell their workers that without the customers,
they don’t have a job, adding that if they are not in a good mood, they don’t
pick the telephone.
“As a public
appeal, we need to do whatever is possible in our various distribution areas to
improve the quality of service, train personnel, recognise that the customer is
king. And even if we cannot provide or solve the problem, we owe it a duty to
explain what we are doing.
“It is a
thankless job. I am conscious of the challenges operators in the sector face.
My team and I are working as hard as we can to make the environment more
conducive to you and as I have always said that as pioneers, you will carry
some burden.
“You will have
to sacrifice perhaps more than what you have done but I am optimistic that it
will get better. I am optimistic that we can win together and we can win for
the Nigerian people,’’ he assured.
On liquidity
constraints, the Minister assured that government was working with development,
local and international partners, who have shown commitments and inspiring
appetite to play in the market in a bid to stem the tide of funding.
‘‘Our partners
in government are also inspiring and understanding of what the challenges are.
So it is quick decision making now. Collaboration and decisions will be fair
but firm and we expect people would respect the decisions and also processes to
be introduced along the line.
“These are
matters the regulator, Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Agency (NERC), will have
to deal with, the bulk trader, Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading (NBET) which
is in-house, Ministry of Finance, and Ministry of Petroleum in terms of gas and
all other players will dovetail into one another.
I think the
owners of this business must look inside and do what is possible. We have
spoken about undercover boss here before. Go round and ask your consumers what
they are facing and this will inform your management decision on what to do,”
he advised
Earlier in his
welcome address, the Managing Director, Ikeja Electric, Mr. Anthony Youdeiwoe,
stated that 2016 was a challenging year for stakeholders, stressing that the
challenges still remain, but are better discussed whenever stakeholders meet in
a bid to address them and proffer solutions.
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