Despite the concerns raised by power sector stakeholders with regard to the appointment of of a former mid – level civil servant, Salihiji Ahmad to head the Rural Electrification Agency, the federal government has insisted that it would go on with the appointment dashing hopes of possible reversal.
The Minister of Power Mamman Saleh in a clarification issued by his spokesperson Emmanuel Bello told BusinessDay that it is at the prerogative of the President to appoint those whom he trusted and can work with to achieve deliverable results.
“Political appointments are not based on civil service levels.What many care about right now is what the new REA boss has to offer and we have confidence is the President’s decision.
“The President said he would appoint competent people with integrity.For most Nigerians ,competence is key and this is about someone the President could work with to achieve a given mandate,”Minister Saleh said.
Saleh clarified further that the President reserves the prerogative for appointment and he has several said he would only work with individuals he can vouch for.
“The President is serious about power reforms and has said it several times” Saleh said.
The REA was created by the Electric Power Sector Reform Act in 2006 to facilitate the provision of affordable power supply for residential, commercial, industrial and social activities in the rural and semi urban areas of the country using renewable energy sources.
BusinessDay funding show that more than 100 million Nigerians are not connected to on grid power despite rising concerns of epilepictical power supply.
Industry analysts said the new managing director must focus on core mandates of the agency in closing the gaps for the of grid Nigerians.
“REA is disoriented over time and not efficiently providing the off grid solutions as it ought to.The managing director should focus on forensic data of unconnected cities across the country;while also embarking on a resource availability drive to push massive rural Electrification in the country;while also embarking on competitive procurement of off-grid and mini grid solution.”Sam Amadi,a former Executive Chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission told BusinessDay.
He said the new managing director could work with cooperatives in communities across the country to drive the process which has proven successful in Chile Egypt and some parts of Eastern Africa.
Chuks Nwani ,an Energy Lawyer told BusinessDay that the new managing director must manage men and resources to get results staying that grid electricity extention is key and could be achieve by combining both off grid and on grid connections.
HARRISON EDEH, ABUJA
