Ayade: Cross River to Generate 50Mw from State Power Plants

Bassey Inyang in Calabar

Cross River State Governor, Professor Ben Ayade, has stated that he is optimistic that a combined power generation from the two power plants built by his administration will add 50 megawatts of electricity capable of providing the state capital, Calabar, with steady supply even without being linked to the national grid.

The governor stated this as he embarked on a tour of the power generating plant at Adiabo close to Tinapa Business and Leisure Resort in Calabar.

While speaking at the 26 megawatts gas-fired power plants expected to be completed soon in Adiabo, he said: “The consistent generation of 26 megawatt from here, combined with the one at Parliamentary Extension, will give Cross River State almost 50mw of steady power supply, making Calabar the first city to be powered from an independent state source without falling back to the national grid.”

The governor said when completed, the gas required for powering of the station would be tapped with an eight-inch pipe from a distance of less than 7 kilometres.

He disclosed that the Parliamentary Extension power plant, which is a diesel power plant, was being converted to gas-fired to ensure about 70 percent reduction in the cost power of its the turbines.

Ayade commended Skippars, the main contractors handling the Adiabo power plant, for doing a good job, and for involving local contractors in the execution of the project.

He said he was delighted that 90 percent of the project is complete, and that the first firing demonstration of the gas-powered electricity generating plant is scheduled for December this year.

In advising the host community of the Adiabo power plant, Ayade told them to take the project as their own, adding:

 “

This project is your own, this project is for your own good.”

The governor, who later inspected  the Pylon and Piles Factory established by his administration in Akamkpa Local Government Area of the state to produce vibrated electric cables, said the factory is “our asset where we produce all the facilities that support power generation.”

Dogara Criticises Northern Establishment for Lack of Empathy over Plight of IDPs

Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Yakubu Dogara, has criticised the northern establishment for not showing any concern over the plights of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPS), particularly women, saying they love political gatherings and prefer to interface with presidential candidates.

Dogara, who stated this in a speech at the 7th Henna Ball Awards night organised by Tozali Magazine with theme: ‘The IDP Question as a stain on Nigeria’s Conscience’, in Abuja last weekend, stated that IDPs are victims of violence fleeing from their homes or communities but have not crossed an international border for safety, adding that they are forced from their homes inside their own country and are in need of protection, shelter, food, and non-food items such as blankets and camp coordination and management.

He said: “According to the UNCHR, Boko Haram and other non-state armed groups as well as clashes between herders and farmers have pushed over three million Nigerians as of November 2021 out of their homes, especially in some parts of North-east Nigeria and the Middle Belt, and increasingly also in North-west region. The protracted crises in this region have resulted in conflict-induced food insecurity and severe malnutrition. This has not only raised some pertinent questions but has become a stain on Nigeria’s conscience.

“If you look at the condition of Nigeria, especially the Northeast, and you don’t feel the pains, you are the one that is sick. No thanks to the activities of these

disheveled terrorists or bandits. The IDP question is more of a northern phenomenon, although there are IDP camps scattered all over the country as a result of the parlous security situation in the country.

“The night has fallen on Nigeria, especially the North. It’s a night so tepid for most of our people so much so that they crave cruel kindness-just something that has meaning even if its meaningless. Ever wondered what it means to be on a bilious race with no finish line or what it means when life becomes worse than death? To escape from this night that only stagnates for most of our people is like traveling on a highway that is well paved with spikes of steel or attempting to sail on a clay boat.

“We all know that the North bears nearly 90 percent of the insecurity brunt of the country. If estimates are anything to go by, not less than 50,000 northerners have been killed while over three million have been displaced in the Northeast alone. No one has the record of northern lives lost to rural banditry, the farmer-herder clashes and ethno-religious conflicts. The number grows exponentially when we add to this, death occasioned by urban violence unleashed by an increasing army of mostly jobless youths suffering from substance use disorder.”

Dogara, however, narrated that: “Under our leadership, we managed to pull all Northeast members into a caucus that met fortnightly. I lead select members on a visit to all the major IDP camps across all the zones with the exception of camps in Maiduguri on account of scheduling issues with the then governor. We took along with us tons of relief materials which we donated to the IPDs and heard their stories first hand. At the Wasa Camp in Abuja, we sank boreholes for them and built a dispensary and donated it to FCT administration to run in order to meet the most immediate health needs of the IDPs. We raised money to help address the plight of IDPs and by the time I left office, our account had a balance of over N50 million.”