Generator ban: IMC experts task FG on stable power supply
The Federal Government has been called upon to ensure a stable electricity generation and distribution in the country before tinkering with a law to criminalise the use of generating sets.
The Bill tagged: Generating sets (prohibition/Ban) Bill 2020 was sponsored by Senator Muhammed Enagi Bima, representing Niger South Senatorial District and it passed its first reading at the senate recently.
But reacting to the proposed Bill, the Acting Registrar of the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON) Mrs. Ijedi Iyoha described the move as unnecessary, at least for now.
In her words: “I think that it would have been best to first work towards the establishment of stable power supply before the Bill is presented. Moreover, if stable power supply is achieved, generating sets will naturally disappear.
The presentation of the Bill came on the heels of decades of unsuccessful efforts by successive governments to provide regular and uninterrupted electricity supply to Nigerians, a situation which has rendered the quest for the nation’s industrial and technological take-off a still-born.
If finally passed into law, the violators of the Bill, which may include importers, distributors and users of generating sets, would be liable to 10 years imprisonment on conviction.
The proposed ban, however, exempted usage of generating sets for essential services such as airports, railway stations and escalators among others.
“Ban excludes essential services. The Ban/prohibition of generating sets shall not include generating sets used for essential services which includes (i) Medical Purposes (Hospitals and Nursing Homes and Healthcare Facilities) (ii) Airports (iii) Railway Stations/Services, (iv) Elevators (Lifts), (v) Escalators (vi) Research Institutions and (vii) Such Facilities that require 24 hours Electric Power Supply”, the Bill read.
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