The House of Representatives has resolved to investigate cases of the alleged negligence of electricity distribution companies, leading to injuries, loss of lives, and property of Nigerians.
At the plenary on Wednesday, the House mandated the Committee on Power to “investigate incidences of deaths and accidents caused by the negligence of electrical safety in the distribution network around the country viz–a–viz safety measures, including the existence and role of safety departments of Discos.”
The committee would also determine the capacity of the Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency to adequately carry out its mandate of policing electricity safety in the distribution network and the overall effectiveness of the Nigerian electricity supply industry, given the vast investment in the power sector.
A member of the House, Sani Bala, had moved a motion titled ‘Need to ensure safety in the electricity distribution network,’ which the lawmakers unanimously adopted, leading to the resolutions.
He noted that in the last quarter of 2018, a report by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission indicated that there were 136,393 complaints from customers about the negligence of the Discos, which had jumped to 151,938 in the first quarter of 2019.
“The House is concerned that negligence of electricity safety is increasingly claiming lives and causing injuries to both electricity sector workers and others, with reports by the 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,” he said.
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