To ensure all its Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) do not accumulate more debt from electricity supplied to them but hardly paid for, the federal government may have approved that the ministry of power takes charge of paying off their monthly electricity bills to electricity distribution companies (Discos).
The government according to the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, has initiated a mechanism which would ensure that payments of monthly electricity bills of its MDAs are centralised and managed by the power ministry.
In 2017, it hinted that such measure was under consideration for adoption and implementation following the discovery that its MDAs owed billions of naira to Discos for supplying them electricity.
He stated this at the flag-off of the second phase of the mass metering scheme of the Abuja Disco in which 222,780 meters were procured by the Disco for its consumers on Wednesday in Abuja.
This, Fashola, who was represented by the Director of Distribution in the ministry, Mrs. Briskilla Sapke, said would bring to an end the reoccurring incidences of MDAs not paying for electricity supplied to them even when funds for such are included in their budgets.
“MDAs Debt is reoccurring, and we are working out a mechanism to bring this to past. This mechanism will ensure that MDAs payment are centralised with the ministry of power,” said Fashola, who also disclosed that he was in talks with one of the Discos’ allegedly most notorious debtors, the Nigerian Military.
He explained he had meetings with the military and other security agencies who owe the Discos for electricity supplies, and who have reportedly refused to be metered or expectedly cut off from supplies.
He noted he impressed it on them the need to allow the Discos provide meters at their various formations and barracks, as well as making payments for power they consume, adding that the military have agreed to have meters installed at their formations.
