The Federal Government of Nigeria has decried the continuous destruction of power installations in the North-Eastern part of the West African nation.
There has been rampant vandalism of power installations in the West African nation with the latest being the bombing of two towers along the Mamaturu-Maiduguri 330kV transmission line by the Boko Haram insurgency group last Saturday.
The group carried a similar attack on the transmission company of Nigeria line supplying power to Maiduguri and its environs about two months ago.
Commenting on the recent development, Minister for Power, Sale Mamman who said he was saddened by the continued vandalism of power installations stressed that protection of public utilities like power installations is the best guarantee of ensuring steady and uninterrupted electricity supply to their areas.
He, therefore, called on Nigerians to assume ownership of such vital national assets by guarding them.
“The people should raise alarm and report to security officials whenever they see people tampering with power equipment,” he said.
The Minister said this while receiving the Paramount Ruler of Ipetu-ijesa Kingdom of Osun Sate, Oba Adeleke Agunbiade-Oke who was on a thank you visit to the Ministry of Power.
Mamman also stated that it was the desire of the FG, under President Muhammadu Buhari, to supply electricity to every community in Nigeria, but that effort was being constrained by the sabotage and willful damage to electricity installations across the country.
The Minister said he was greatly pained by the recent destruction of the power tower supplying electricity to Maiduguri, which was recently restored by the Transmission Company of Nigeria. He added: “This act of desperate and wicked damage of public utilities should not be a justifiable means for any agitation”.
Mamman advised the Ipetu-ijesha Kingdom to provide adequate security protection for the newly restored equipment to guard against future destructions.
Describing power as critical to national development, Sale Mamman said the Ministry of Power would continue to work harder to improve and sustain the current success recorded in the power sector under President Buhari.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com