Ajagu Calls for Steady Electricity, Security

By Emmanuel Otaru

The President, Governing Council, Academy for Entrepreneurial Studies, Nigeria (AES) Excellence Club, Ausbeth Ajagu, has called for investments in ventures that will promote steady electricity and proper security that will make the country a haven for all and sundry.

Ajagu made the call at the club’s eighth annual CEOs’ dinner/awards nite, held in Lagos recently.

The theme of the event, ‘Electricity and security: Keys to National Development’, had the former Minister of Power, Prof. Bart Nnaji, as the keynote speaker.

According to Ajagu, “most developed countries of the world that we admire today are  ‘standing tall’ because of uninterrupted electric power supply with little or no security challenge.

“The continuous passionate drive of AES Excellence Club to add to national development necessitated the theme of the dinner/ awards nite.

He said irrespective of the current electricity challenges in Nigeria, AES focuses on solutions, as there is no problem without solution.

“As a key to national development, electricity promotes inventions, advances public and private businesses, helps in the smooth running of governmental and non-governmental bodies and generally enhances overall economic development,” he said further.

The AES president equally said security guarantees safety of lives and properties which encourages people to invest in diverse forms of economic activities. “Insecurity cannot only discourage development of any nation drastically but would render her lame no matter how developed  the nation may be,”  he said.

Ajagu enjoined “all of us to take securing our homes, churches, mosques, public and private companies, schools, hospitals, highways and the country at large as a matter of priority. I would also appeal to government, private and public sectors and individuals to support security agencies with resources and trainings to guarantee effective security in Nigeria.”

At the occasion, the keynote speaker, Nnaji, lamented the dismal electricity generation in the country.

He said Brazil currently generates about 130,000 megawatts of electricity and by 2020s Nigeria’s population which may match that of Brazil may not be able to satisfy her electricity demands compared to Brazil.

He however raised the hope of achieving improved electricity in the country by upgrading the obsolete equipment of the Gencos and the Discos.

According to him, “electricity is perishable commodity. You must be able to take it to the end users as it is being generated because it cannot be stored.”

Nnaji said the Aba model which he spearheaded, if adopted in parts of the country can ensure efficient generation and distribution of electricity.

Another solution to the problem he said is by having proper electricity tariff which will make the business profitable for the discos to gencos and so on.

Chairman of the occasion, former Minister of External Affairs, Prof. Bolaji Akinyemi, commended the AES Excellence Club for its effort in repositioning the nation for true greatness. “I enjoin well-meaning corporations, relevant stakeholders and individuals to support the club in this onerous task of fast-tracking our national development.”

He said: “Within the last decade, our country has been experiencing disturbing dimension in security related matters and the near or total collapse of electricity supply nationwide is a bad testimony in our quest to greatness, self-reliance, cum development. Both the government and the people must be serious and determined to do all that is necessary to guarantee maximum security, provision of constant/reliable electricity which are key to national development.”

Among the dignitaries who graced the event were two former Heads of State, General Yakubu Gowon, and Ernest Shonekan who received awards among other important awardees.

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