MISCHIEVOUS ALLEGATION OF ABANDONMENT OF CHINESE POWER EQUIPMENT: AMOSUN ON TOP OF POWER SUPPLY IN
OGUN STATE

By Wole Elegbede


Mischief makers will not be allowed to have field day in Ogun State. Recently, some sections of the social media were inundated with stories by fictitious writers that the governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun left a power equipment imported from China by the previous administration of former governor Gbenga Daniel to rot for political reasons.

The said power equipment, kept at the parade ground of fallen heroes and heroine of the Armed Forces at the governor's office in Oke Mosan, Abeokuta, were meant to booster the power supply by a nearby Power plant to offices at the government secretariat.

These mischievous writers queried why the equipment should be abandoned by Amosun since government is a continuum. Explanations by officials of the Amosun-led administration had shown that the allegations were unfounded. Not only were the imported Chinese power equipment obsolete, they will be costlier to manage.

While all this was going on, little did the governor's adversaries realised he is on top of the power supply in the gateway state.

Sometime ago, the administration signed a Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) with Lisabi Power to build an Independent Power Plant (IPP) in the State.

To the glory of God, the IPP is being commissioned today, according to this story in The Nation newspaper. I qoute: "The Ogun State government will today switch on the 15 Megawatts (MW) power plant it built with Lisabi Power an Independent Power Provider (IPP) through a Public Partnership Programme (PPP) arrangement.

The government said the power plant will end interrupted power supply at the government secretariat, government quarters, public hospitals, and other government establishments.

The Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Olamilekan Adegbite, announced this yesterday while hosting the executives and members of Egba Economic Summit (EES), led by its Chairman of Programmes and Economic Development, Tokunbo Odebunmi.

The commissioner said the government will start with the distribution of 5MW tomorrow.

In a statement by the Head of Media in the ministry, Mr. Ayokunle Ewuoso, the commissioner said government facilities, including the Government House, commissioners’ quarters, water corporation, modern shopping malls, street lights, legislative quarters and the deputy governor’s home will benefit from the first phase.

He said: “On November 1, we are switching on the first phase of 5MW of the power plant, but the whole thing is still going to 15 MW, eventually. The power plant had been test-run for three to four weeks before it was switched off on October 1 because we found out that the cable had been damaged by yet-to-be-identified persons. This has been fixed and we are assuring that on November 1, the energy plant will start work fully.

“We are also doing the power system for Ijebu-Ode, Sagamu and Ota. We have qualified about 12 IPP contractors and they are going to get their money over 15 years.”

Adegbite, who said the power plant, which has its generation at Onijaganjagan in Ifo Local Government Area and its power house at Oke-Sokori in Abeokuta North Local Government Area, would also serve the palaces of kings in Abeokuta metropolis.

The commissioner added that more people and organisations would be considered in the distribution by the time the power plants is upgraded to 15MW.

Odebunmi hailed the government for its unprecedented infrastructural development across the state".

http://thenationonlineng.net/ogun-inaugurate-15mw-power-plant-today/


Elegbede, a is a Public Affairs analyst, sent the piece from woleogunstate@gmail.com

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