Of Mohammed Wakil and Borno Electricity Question By Aliyu Ibrahim Recent happenings in Borno raise many questions with regards to infrastructural needs of the state. With politics fast knocking at the door, there is a tendency to muddle facts with fiction and a predilection to misinform war-wearied public with politically doctored reports. Hence a bit of introspection on where Borno was, where it is now and where it is heading in the power sector, is necessary for the sake of posterity. When the barrister at law was posted to the Federal Ministry of Power as a Minister of State, many wondered how he will cope and what he can bring to the table in this highly technical ministry. Borno people were also anxious to see how the former majority leader in the Federal House of Representatives will take care of his home base even when they acknowledged him to be a fiercely nationalistic Nigerian. A review of his tenure so far revealed a man who has successfully balanced local needs with his mandate under the transformation agenda of Mr. President. His contribution nationally is however a subject for another time. It is important for the records to dwell on the contributions of the minister to the successful conclusion of the power sector reform in addition to meeting the local power needs of the people of Borno state. This is to assist students of history and to dissuade merchants of falsehood wherever they may be. The public needs to be informed that Borno state had been suffering from epileptic power supply long before Mr. Wakil was posted to the Ministry of Power. This is due in part to the fact that the whole state is been serviced through 132kV single circuit transmission line from Gombe since 1976. The line has a limited capacity to carry power requirement of the state and neighboring country of Niger state. Above all, the voltage also dropped from Gombe –Biu –Dmaboa-Maiduguri is enormous. Hence the power problem does not start with the minister. To tackle the problem fundamentally has been the major preoccupation of the minister. In view of the above and considering the rate at which Maiduguri the state capital was expanding, the Federal Government on the advice of the Federal Ministry of Power awarded a contract for a 330kV transmission line and 1x150MVA substation along Damboa Maiduguri .The project suffered a lot of setback delaying its completion. Immediately, Mr Wakil heard of the delay and bottlenecks in the completion of the project, he mounted necessary pressure through the Presidency and secure funding for the project even before was appointed the minister of state. And when he was appointed minister in the ministry, his first directive was to the Transmission Company of Nigeria was to complete the Maiduguri 330/132kV, 1x150MVA substation in six months. He followed through with the directive .He proceeded the see that the transformer was delivered to site. Some accessories however could not reach the site due to access road of less than one kilometer from the substation to the main road. Worst still, this was outside the scope of the contract. Hon Wakil then approached the state government to construct the access road so that the material could be taken to the site. This was because requesting for variation to accommodate the access road will delay the job. Moreso, the state should be seen to be making contribution. The state government agreed to the request but up till now the road has not been constructed. On the directive of the minister, the TCN is now going to construct the access road. Once completed, other accessories of the transformer will be moved to site. The minister is not done yet with his quest for fundamental solution to Borno power needs. To improve the quality and quantity of power supply to the state, the minister pushed for an additional 132/33Kv,1 x 60MVA transformer for Maiduguri in addition to the present one at Baga road substation which is presently ninety five percent overloaded without any room for expansion. With the present additional 132/33Kv ,1x 60MVA which was approved by the Federal Executive Council on September 10th,2014 ,the room for expansion is limitless and the old one will be relieved of overloading. Hence, the above steps promise to reverse the terrible power situation in the state. The steps Hon Wakil took structurally altered the equation by expanding the transmission facilities serving the state and environs. This is the first time this huge change and transformation is brought to Borno courtesy the minister acting on the directive of President Goodluck Jonathan. As a son of the state, I believe Wakil deserves accolades. This is where Borno was before the escalation of the insurgency led to subsequent power outage. On the power outage, the minister was so disturbed with the plight of his people that he launched series of consultation with military authorities even as he issued relevant directives for the reconnection of the state to national grid. He then immediately summoned a meeting of industry players and constituted a technical committee headed by his special Assistant on technical matters to find immediate solution to the power outage. Several letters were written to the Chief of Army Staff who has been very supportive by accepting request for security cover. The reconnection of Damboa to Maiduguri line is to be effected in due course. This is good news for all good people of Borno. We need to state all the above to set the records straight. A lawyer in a technical ministry has assisted his people in ways and manners never witnessed since 1976.We must acknowledge those who tirelessly work for the interest of the good of Borno in particular and Nigeria at large. *Ibrahim sent this piece from Maiduguri, Borno state capital - See more at: moonreports/?p=2642#sthash.XfefNOVg.dpuf
Posted on: Fri, 12 Sep 2014 21:25:44 +0000
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