The appointment of Oloye Adebayo Adelabu as the Minister of Power by PBAT actually underlines many factors.
Firstly, the man is consciously positioned and assigned the portfolio of the Ministry of Power in order to actualize one of the topmost elements of the Renewed Hope agenda of Mr President.
Secondly, this kind of job, where public expectations are high can only be given to someone that has been tested and trusted to have a Midas Touch.
A glance at the document highlighting the ten promises of PBAT to Nigerians puts power as being very key and paramount to the economic prosperity of Nigeria
Item Number 8 of the document states thus: “Generate, transmit and distribute sufficient, affordable electricity to give our people the requisite power to enlighten their lives, their homes, and their dreams”.
The dreams that have never been fulfilled for once in the life of a nation. The expectations that have been a mirage over the years. And, of course, the hope that has remained in the state of hopelessness for so long a time. PBAT is set to address it frontally this time around.
From now on, all eyes will be on the Minister and his Ministry as people make concurrent assessments of the performance of PBAT administration on a daily basis using electricity supply as a parameter.
Unlike what happens in other Ministries where performance indices may not be so obvious and visible to ordinary Nigerians, Ministry of Power is open to assessments by barbers, welders, hairdressers, pepper grinders and Nigerians generally.
Oloye Adebayo Adelabu has been allotted a Ministry that touches and impacts the lives of everyday Nigerian, domestically and commercially.
A Ministry whose responsibility it is to light up and power our homes, provide light for our roads at night and power our businesses.
A Ministry that has a direct link with the growth and developments of the economy of the country. A Ministry that can aptly be described as “The Power House of the Nation”
Knowing fully well where we are coming from, it is needless to say that the job won’t be a tea party. It will definitely be a tough and arduous task to accomplish.
I wrote sometimes ago that the immediate past administration met Nigeria in darkness and actually left us in darkness.
Without sounding immodest, that has been the story of the successive governments since 1960, and that is the story of where we are coming from.
Power has been a sector riddled with neglect, inefficiency, corruption and many other untoward practices over the years.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo tried to make a difference by injecting humongous fund into it, but the popular 16B dollars allegedly expended on the projects ended up in private pockets.
As a new era is born today, challenges are enormous but very surmountable by a President and his Minister desirous to change the narratives.
- Oloye Adebayo Adelabu has come at a time when the installed capacity of power generation in Nigeria is put at 13 Megawatts, but available power for consumption is hovering between 3,000 Megawatts and 5,000 Megawatts.
- Oloye Adebayo Adelabu has come at a time when the population of Nigeria is conservatively put at 220 millions and require about 220 Megawatts of electricity to service her need as against 5 Megawatts available for consumption currently. This ideally leaves a gap of 215 Megawatts to fill!
- Oloye Adebayo Adelabu has come at a time when there is a seemingly raging controversy between the service providers and the consumers concerning the correct pricing of the product.
- Oloye Adebayo Adelabu has come at a time when deregulation of power generation has just been signed into law by PBAT. Like other new laws, its implementation will surely come with its attendant challenges.
- Oloye Adebayo Adelabu has come at a time when the source of generating power is majorly by employing the use of gas whose control is not under the purview of the Ministry of Power.
*Oloye Adebayo Adelabu has come at a time when Nigeria is open to both local and foreign investors whose business interest will be predicated on the availability of regular and uninterrupted supply of electricity.
All these and many more are the challenges the Minister shall be contending with in the days to come.
However, people are confident that Oloye Adebayo Adelabu has what it takes to confront these challenges meticulously and conscientiously. The job that is extraordinary in nature to execute requires a super ordinary technocrat to handle. Therefore, the decision of Mr President to hire Oloye Adebayo Adelabu for the job is not done in error.
The fear being expressed in certain quarters that the assignment does not fall within his core area of competence has been allayed by no other a person than the Minister himself.
What people don’t know is that the Minister doesn’t need to be omniscient, that is, knowing everything about everything which is an attribute of God. What he needs to possess are leadership skills which in management has universal applications.
And considering his rich but intimidating credentials, his antecedents in both public and private sectors, the Ibadan born Minister is tipped to have been equipped sufficiently to be able to do what Napoleon could not do.
Therefore, as Oloye Adebayo Adelabu formally assumes the office today, we pray for him that where others have failed, he shall succeed.
Let There Be Light!!!
Congratulations !!!
B. Aderemi Ogundele
(Jagunmolu)
