The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) has rejected the sale of 10 power plants by the federal government. They have headed to court to stop the move of privatisation of the plants.
The NGF revealed that its lawyers have moved to prevent the federal government from selling those power plants that are under the National Integrated Power Projects.
The Niger Delta Power Holding Company, owned by the federal, state, and local government councils, is a power generation and distribution company that is saddled with the responsibility of the implementation of the NIPPs.
The coalition of the 36 states governors, chaired by, Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State in a statement released on Wednesday, November 23, 2022, after a virtual meeting held on Tuesday to show their dissatisfaction over the FG’s decision.
The statement reads thus; “The Forum, following its advocacy that the proposed privatisation of 10 National Integrated Power Projects (NIPPs) by the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) should be stopped, instructed its lawyers to approach the Federal High Court which, at present has issued a court order restraining all the parties in the suit from taking any step or action that will make or render the outcome of the motion on notice seeking for interlocutory injunction nugatory.
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“The effect of the order of the court is that respondents cannot proceed with the proposed sale of the power plants belonging to the Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited (NDPHCL) until the hearing and determination of the motion on notice for interlocutory injunction.”
According to a report by PUNCH newspaper on April 2021, the National Council on Privatisation permissioned the adoption of a fast-track strategy for the privatisation of 5 power plants listed as Geregu, Omotosho, Olorunsogo, Calabar and Benin-Ihovbor.
The Director General, Bureau of Public Enterprises, Mr Alex Okoh, made this announcement in Abuja at the Investor Pre-bid Conference for the privatisation of the five plants and gave the names of 16 pre-qualified bidding firms.
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