Energy and Power
Jos DISCO MD calls for creation of Special tribunal for electricity thieves
By Mark Moses
Forced by the menace of vandals on electricity installations in the country, the Managing Director of Jos Electricity Distribution Plc, Engr. Hashim Ibrahim Bakori has called for the establishment of a special tribunal to be exclusively dedicated for the trial and conviction of electricity thieves and vandals of electricity infrastructure.
Bakori in a press statement signed and issued to Journalists on Sunday in Jos by the Head, Corporate Communications, Dr. Friday Adakole Elijah also called for the invocation of the Miscellaneous Offences Act (2004 CAP M17) under which electricity criminals could be tried with stiff penalties via the instrumentality of sections 3(B), 9 and 10 of the Act.
He said for proper comprehension of the statute, Section 3(B) of the act states that, “Any person who unlawfully or with intent to destroy or damage any public property, removes, defaces or damages any public property shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 21 years without the option of a fine”.
The MD added that section 9 of the act states as follows, “Any person who unlawfully disconnects, removes, damages, tampers, meddles with or in any way whatsoever interferes with any plant, works, cables, wire or assembly of wires designed or used for transforming or converting electricity shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to be sentenced to imprisonment for life”.
“In the same vein, section 10 stipulates as that, “Any person who unlawfully disconnects, removes, damages, tampers, meddles with or in any way whatsoever interferes with any electric fittings, meters or other appliances used for generating, transforming, converting, conveyancing, supplying or selling electricity shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 21years”.
Engr. Bakori who made the call in an exclusive interview with journalists in his office over weekend disclosed that the activities of vandals and electricity thieves were seriously hampering the operations of the energy sector.
According to him, most DisCos especially Jos Electricity Distribution Plc were suffering from the menace of vandalism saying, “if it is not Distribution Transformers, cables or feeder pillars, it will be Aluminum Conductors. And the equipment are very expensive. In fact, Vandals have become a thorn in the flesh of DisCos in this country”.
The Managing Director explained that when established, the tribunal would help to stem the tide of vandalism of electricity installations and other ancillary electricity crimes in the country.
He disclosed that between January and July 2021 alone, Jos DisCo have had about 170 Distribution Transformers, copper cables, and Aluminum Conductors valued at hundreds of millions of naira Vandalized.
Engr. Bakori stated further that Makurdi, Bauchi and Bukuru have the highest rate of vandalism with 34, 30 and 30 respectively, followed by Gombe 27, Jos Metro 17, Azare 9, Gboko 8 and Otukpo 10.
The Managing Director was however pleased that despite the nefarious activities of vandals, the company’s security department in conjunction with the various security formations in the company’s franchise states have been trying their best in curbing the situation as three number of criminals have been convicted and 15 others are still pending in various courts in Bauchi, Benue, Gombe and Plateau states.
He therefore appealed to members of the public to help in safeguarding electricity installations in their locality since they are the end beneficiaries of the company services stressing that when these facilities were vandalized, it would be the communities that would be negatively affected even though Jos Electricity Distribution plc would lose a lot of revenue.
The Chief Executive Officer also disclosed that henceforth, the company would not take responsibility for the replacement of stolen and vandalized electricity facilities or items saying, “JED PLC has zero budget provision for the replacement of any stolen or vandalized items”.
President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of executive and non-executive members for the newly established Nigerian Independent System Operator, NISO.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Special Adviser to the President on Informaion and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga in Abuja, listed the names of members as, Adesegun Olugbade as the board chairman, while Abdu Mohammed Bello was appointed the Managing Director.
Four other Executive Directors are Engineer Nafisatu Asabe Ali for Systems Operation, Engineer Shehu Abba-Aliyu for Systems Planning, Dr. Edmund Eje for Market Operations, and Mr. Babajide Ibironke for Finance and Corporate Services.
According to the statement, the Non-Executive Directors include Lamu Audu, representing Generation; Folake Soetan for Distribution; Tajudeen Giwa-Osagie as Market Expert; Sule Ahmed Abdulaziz for Transmission, and Alhaji Mahmuda Mamman, Permanent Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Power.
“The National Council on Privatisation (NCP) will finalise the recruitment process.
“These appointments align with the Electricity Act of 2023. They followed a memorandum from Vice President Kashim Shettima and a rigorous selection process conducted by the Independent Board Nomination Committee (IBNC) in collaboration with Phillips Consulting Limited.
“The creation of NISO fulfils a key mandate of the Electricity Act (2023), which requires the unbundling of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) into a Transmission System Provider (TSP) and an Independent System Operator (ISO).
“The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) officially established NISO on April 30, 2024. The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) and the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) are its subscribers, each holding equal equity shares.”
The Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN), through its Energy Management Systems project, has trained stakeholders in various Ministries and Agencies in Nigeria to enhance industrial energy performance and promote resource-efficient, cleaner production.
The training took place in Abuja on Monday.
The ECN said the initiative is implemented through programmatic approaches and the promotion of innovation in clean technology solutions.
Speaking during the event, the ECN Director General, Dr. Mustapha Abdullahi, stated that the aim of the training was to promote innovation in clean technology solutions under the NIG IEE/RECP Project, which is supported by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
According to him, the project is also targeted at strengthening national industrial energy efficiency (IEE) policies and regulatory frameworks to encourage the adoption of UNIDO’s Energy Management Systems Standards (EnMS/ISO 50001) in Nigeria.
The Director General said, “With the increase in energy prices and the environmental impacts of energy consumption, there is a growing need for balanced energy usage and effective energy management to minimize energy wastage. It is therefore commendable that this timely training on Energy Management Systems (EnMS) is organized to present a systematic framework for establishing policies, processes, procedures, and specific energy-related tasks aimed at meeting an organization’s energy-saving targets.”
Also, the Program Coordinator for Environment and Energy at the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) for Nigeria and ECOWAS, Mr. Oluyomi Banjo, commended the ECN for organizing the training.
He said, “Globally, industries account for one-third of total energy consumption and almost 40% of worldwide COz emissions. The need to reduce energy consumption, environmental degradation, and resource depletion by industries in emerging economies is particularly urgent. Since 1990, global growth in industrial production has been dominated by emerging economies like India and China, which together accounted for over 80% of increased industrial production during this period.
“This project was collectively developed and submitted by UNIDO on behalf of Nigeria in 2017 under the Global Environment Facility (GEF) 6 programming cycle. It was approved for full project development in 2017 and subsequently for full project implementation in 2020. It may interest you to know that, for the first time at UNIDO, we are integrating industrial energy efficiency with resource efficiency and cleaner production in a single project. In South Africa, UNIDO’s project on Industrial Energy Efficiency recently received the Best Project of the Year award from the Southern Africa Energy Efficiency Confederation. We look forward to replicating such achievements in Nigeria.”
“The outcome of this project is targeted at industries, aiming to develop an expert base in Nigeria that could also be exported to other countries in Africa and beyond.”
The Rural Electricity Agency (REA), in partnership with the Adamawa State Government, is set to convene the REA – Adamawa State Strategic Roundtable theme “Empowering Adamawa: Unlocking Private Sector Opportunities in Distributed Renewable Energy”, scheduled for the 3rd of March, 2025 at the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja. The Agency invites frontline stakeholders in the clean energy ecosystem, including private sector players and development finance institutions to this strategic, solution-focused Roundtable.
In line with the Agency’s ongoing State-by-State initiative designed to exploit the tenets of the 2023 Electricity Act, passed into Law by His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, the Agency has sustained its drive to deliver on the objectives of the futuristic Act, while strengthening the National Electrification and Strategy Implementation Plan (NESIP).
Leaning on the strategic efforts of the Honourable Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, the REA State-by-State Strategic Roundtables continue to serve as a veritable tool and a meeting point to facilitate impactful partnerships between active stakeholders in the energy sector while exploring opportunities for the growth of the state electricity markets.
Having convened five Roundtables with five State Governments, the Agency is now working in lockstep with the Adamawa State Government, at the behest of His Excellency, Governor Ahmadu Umaru Finitri, and the Managing Director of the REA, Abba Abubakar Aliyu, to facilitate structured, data-driven commitments for people-centred infrastructural development through innovation and sustainability in Adamawa State’s electricity market.
The State Government, under the leadership of Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, has advanced efforts towards strengthening its electricity market, including the planned establishment of Independent Power Plants across the state and the set-up of the Adamawa State Electricity Commission tasked with regulating the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity in the State.
The 2023 Electricity Act, having aided the decentralization of the nation’s electricity sector has given State Governments the regulatory freedom over their respective electricity market.
Leaning on the mandate of the REA as well as the Agency’s technical and strategic expertise, the REA – Adamawa State Strategic Roundtable will serve as an opportunity to exploit the tenets of the NESIP; strengthening PPPs for data-driven clean energy projects in Adamawa state; supporting the State’s efforts on improved electricity distribution and renewable energy integration; exploring investment opportunities in Adamawa State Electricity market and exploring technology options for improved, sustainable energy access in the State.
Kogi Central Women group support recall of Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan
IDF officer fired after publicly rejecting continuation of fighting, criticizing leadership
Ghana’s anti-drug agency nabs Nigerian drug kingpin, Uchechukwu Chima, seizes $2.1m worth of cocaine, heroin
-
News4 days agoBill to establish National Cashew Production and Research Institute in Kogi passes first reading in Senate
-
Security1 week agoNigerian Coast Guard: Citizens warned against extortion as passage of bill is being awaited
-
Politics1 week agoRetired military officer, colonel Gbenga Adegbola, joins APC with 13,000 supporters
-
Politics1 week agoCPDPL accuses Adeyanju of orchestrating smear campaign against FCT Minister Wike
-
News4 days agoShehu Sani debunks Governor Uba Sani’s alleged diversion of LG funds, challenges El-Rufai to publicly tender evidence
-
News4 days agoReport of attack on Wike’s Port Harcourt residence false, misleading – Police
-
News3 days agoPlateau gov’t expresses concern over violence in Shendam LGA, calls for calm
-
Sports5 days agoMerino gives Arsenal win over Chelsea