The Nigerian Governors Forum, NGF, has rejected and legally moved against the sale of the country’s 10 Power Plants, by heading to the Federal High Court to stop the move of the privatisation of the Power Plants by the President Muhammadu Buhari Federal Government, .
The NGF disclosed that its Lawyers have moved to prevent the Federal Government from selling the Power Plants which are under the National Integrated Power Projects, NIPPs.
The Niger Delta Power Holding Company, which is owned by the Federal, State and Local Government Councils, is a Power generation and distribution company that oversees the implementation of the NIPPs.
The 36 State Governors through their Chairman, Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State, released a statement on Wednesday, after a Teleconference meeting, which held on Tuesday, to express their displeasure over the government’s move for the sale.
The statement partly reads: “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.
“The effect of the order of the court is that the 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.”
Recall, that in April 2021, the National Council on Privatisation approved 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, BPE, Alex Okoh, announced in Abuja, at the Investor pre-bid Conference for the privatisation of the 5 Plants, and gave the names of 16 pre-qualified bidding firms.
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