Read the press statement from the presidency below...
President Muhammadu Buhari has identified sabotage and
theft of gas as factors undermining the efforts of the
government to increase power supply in the country. To
tackle the problem, the President announced that existing
Military Task-Forces will be reorganized to ensure a
successful protection of the network of gas pipelines.
The President, who said this Tuesday in a question-and-
answer interaction with the Nigerian community in Tehran,
the Islamic Republic of Iran, noted that "although some
improvement in power had been recorded in the recent
period," sabotage of pipeline installations continued to be a
problem. He told his audience that Nigeria had everything it
takes to generate enough power. "Power is a running battle
because the saboteurs are still there. We have the potential.
We have gas, we have qualified people but we are
contending with a lot of saboteurs who go and blow up
installations. When gas is pumped to Egbin and such other
power stations, thieves and saboteurs such as the militants
cut those supplies," President Buhari said.
He also cited another factor as the reduced role of the
government in the sector due to the privatization of the
institutions under the Power Holding Company of Nigeria,
PHCN, in the process of which, he said, the facilities "have
been sold to a number of interest groups." He assured that
the Military Task-Forces with representation from the Army,
Navy, Air Force, the Police and other security agencies will
be reconstituted to secure the pipelines. "Supplies will
become steady; there will be less sabotage as we secure the
pipelines," he stressed. President Buhari also updated the
Nigerians in Tehran on the efforts of his administration
towards ending the Boko Haram insurgency and terrorism in
the country, explaining that a lot had been achieved following
the reorganization of the military top command, followed by
increased equipment supply and training. In a response to a
question on the need to improve healthcare delivery, the
President said that efforts had been intensified towards
ridding the country of fake drugs and fake doctors, and also
what he called "the disgraceful aspects" manifested by "baby
factories." He also enumerated several steps being taken
towards the revival of education from primary school level to
university. On the creation of jobs, he placed the prevailing
joblessness in the country at the door-step of the last
administration which he blamed for giving "a devastating
blow to the economy through corruption and incompetence."
The President said that something urgent will be done about
the bad condition of roads, citing the Lagos-Ibadan
Expressway as one to be addressed from next week by the
Minister of Works, Power and Housing, Babatunde Fashola,
who sat next to him at the meeting. Speaking on the issue of
corruption, one of the three issues he identified as the
priorities of his administration, President Buhari said that the
necessity for compliance with due process of the law was
responsible for the delay in the prosecution of the looters of
the country's economy. He noted however, that the "the day
of reckoning is gradually coming." He also revealed that a
number of past officials had begun the voluntary return of
stolen funds but expressed the view that his government
was not satisfied with tokens."We want to have everything
back – all that they took by force in 16 years," the President
concluded.
GARBA SHEHU Senior Special Assistant to the President
(Media & Publicity) November 24, 2015.
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