Ohanaeze Tasks FG On Completion Of Aba Power Project

PRESIDENT GOODLUCK JONATHAN (5TH L) VICE-PRESIDENT NAMADI SAMBO (4T L) WITH OF MEMBERS OF NDI IGBO LAGOS DURING THEIR VISIT TO THE PRESIDENTIAL VILLA ABUJA. JANUARY 10, 2013

ABUJA, January 10, (THEWILL) - The Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Thursday in Abuja, called on President Goodluck Jonathan to use his good offices  to ensure the completion of the Aba Power project so that the  people of the South-East could benefit from it.

President of the association, Prof. Anya O Anya,made the call when he  led members of the Igbo socio-cultural group to meet with  Jonathan at the Presidential Villa.

Briefing State House correspondents after the meeting, Anya disclosed  that the thrust of their meeting with the president was the Aba power project and other developmental matters.

According to Anya, these include roads construction and rehabilitation as well as the  upgrading of railway networks linking the South with the Northern part of the country.

It would be recalled that  before the exit of the  former minister of power, Prof. Barth Nnaji, last year, the former minister  had pledged that
the 140 megawatts (MW) Aba independent power project (IPP) being constructed by  Geometric Power Systems Limited, would commence operation.

He also stated that the company was planning expansion of the project by additional 48mw by 2013, adding that this will be extended to 688mw  by mid- 2014 or beginning of 2015.

The late President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua had performed the foundation laying ceremony of the project in November 2007 at Osisioma in Aba, Abia State.

Geometric Power Limited.  had actually clinched the deal  to construct a model power plant in Aba in May 2006, but  the project is yet to materialise since.

 Although Anya did not disclose what his group thought could stall the project, he stated that their fear is that it may not be completed as a result of the alteration of the terms of contract.

Explaining that the president has assured  that the terms of contract will not be breached, Anya said: “We wanted to be sure that there is no modification to the issue of the Aba Power Project in terms of the agreements reached .

 “So, when you start tampering with a project that is being finished, you are saying that perhaps in the next three years nothing will happen. And we don’t want that to happen. Not in the area of power. And Mr President has assured us.

" And he anticipated us before we came and had a thorough study of everything that we were going to raise. The Attorney General was there. The DG BPP was there and all those who had a role to play were there. We are quite satisfied.”

He commended President Jonathan for his giant strides in developing the nation saying: “If Nigerians got to know that the responsiveness of Mr President is like this, may be people will recognise that perhaps a lot more is being done, because I must confess that most of the things we were told were on-going, we didn’t know were there.

"So, there is the  need to ensure  a lot more flow of information between us, the governed and those who govern us.”