Experts in the power sector in Nigeria under the aegis of Licensed Electrical Contractors Association of Nigeria (LECAN), at the weekend, applauded the House of Representatives resolution to investigate incidences of deaths and accidents caused by the negligence of electrical safety in the distribution network around the country as well as safety measures including the existence and role of Safety Departments of all the Distribution Companies (DISCOs).
Speaking exclusively with Parliamentary Correspondents in Abuja, the LECAN President, Dr John Ekere Etim, called for a paradigm shift in the industry with a view to improve service delivery and ensure efficiency.
The lawmakers during the debate on the motion on the ‘Need to ensure safety in the electricity distribution network,’ sponsored by Hon. Sani Bala, expressed reservation over the capacity of Nigeria Electricity Management Services Agency (NEMSA) to adequately carry out its mandate of policing electricity safety in the distribution network, as well as, the overall effectiveness of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry, given the vast investment in the power sector.
According to Hon. Bala, a report issued by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) in the last quarter of 2018 indicated that there were 136,393 complaints from customers about the negligence of the Electricity Distribution Companies (DISCOs) which had jumped to 151,938 in the first quarter of 2019.
The lawmaker further lamented that the negligence of electricity safety is increasingly claiming lives and causing injuries to both electricity sector workers and others with reports by NERC alleging that approximately two persons died of electrocution every fortnight during the fourth quarter of 2019, as compared to the third quarter where roughly three persons died of electrocution fortnightly.
Worried by the level of irregularities condoned in the industry, Dr Etim who decried the complacency by the regulatory agencies towards ensuring compliance with the extant regulatory framework in the industry, argued that the distribution network has become a dumping ground for unsafe electrical installation because of NEMSA negligence to ensure the safety of electricity.
“You will agree with me that it has not been like that before but today, it’s increasing daily. Number one is that before members of licensed electrical contractors were used to do all installations, the electricity law says so but today the DISCOs are using quacks and casuals to do their works.
“That’s why we have many of the accidents, they are using substandard materials that are not good for the system, the fire outbreak and electrocution and all the things that are happening in the sector.
“The issue is that they are not using the professionals to do the jobs. If you go to the DISCOs you will find out that many of the technical staffs have been sacked. They are now using mainly marketers, somebody who must come today and tomorrow you see him on the line and that is also affecting the system.
“And the NEMSA is also to be blamed because the mandate of NEMSA is to ensure safety, they are supposed to inspect and test installation before it is connected to the national grid. But today it’s not like that. NEMSA is charging very exorbitantly that made contractors or DISCOs instead the DISCOs will just collect money and go and link projects like that into the system.
“So you find out that most of the projects done especially in communities are not working, they don’t stand the test of time. So NEMSA is also at fault because they are even licensing people who are not qualified to be licensed because they now introduced what they called ‘Corporate license’.
“For the corporate license, anybody just goes there whether you know anything about electricity or not you can just get one engineer, or they pay somebody who goes to sit for the exam for them,” he observed.
While responding to questions bothering on the influx of substandard electrical equipment across the country, Dr Etim blamed the Federal Government for the exclusion of the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) which is constitutionally saddled with the responsibility of certification of the equipment from the seaport.
“You can see the problem we are facing in the industry. There is a lot of compromises. In electricity, there is no compromise. In electricity, if you use substandard materials definitely it will backfire, so if you use quality materials it will last, the same thing with all the equipment.
“But in Nigeria, you find that these Nigerian traders who go abroad to buy materials are also a problem because most of the electrification material, for the quality I can say maybe 75 per cent are fake, poor quality; only 25 per cent are quality and the price of the good quality ones are very high.
“So some people will go to buy because they want to also maximize profits so they go and buy the substandard ones and that is why we are still having the problems.
“But like we say, how do this substandard drops in” It does just drop from the air? It passes through our seaports, we have our Customs there. I don’t know the politics that is happening at the seaports because the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) suppose to be at the seaport and the Entry Points, NAFDAC supposes to be at the Entry Point where these things come in.
“But we find that those people are no more there, they have been removed. It’s only Customs that are there at the seaports and they are supposed to inspect and call SON to come and inspect but you find a lot of poor quality materials coming into the country every time. So those things are also affecting the system,” the LECAN President noted.
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