Association for Public Policy Analysis (APPA), a Civil Society Organisation (CSO), has urged the federal government to protect the rights of electricity consumers.

The national president of APPA, Princewill Okorie, spoke against the backdrop of the recent plan by Fidelity Bank to take over the boards of Kano, Benin and Kaduna Distribution Companies (DISCOs) and to collateralise their shares.

The director-general, Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE), Alex Okoh, and the executive chairman, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Sanusi Garba, made the development known in a joint statement issued in Abuja recently.

Mr Okorie said there was a need for the federal government to set up a committee to monitor consumer interest following the development.

“What had been existing all this while is that section 80 and 81 of the Electricity Power Sector Reform Act has been silent.

“We found out that implementation of sections 80 and 81 of the Electricity Power Sector Reform Act that deal with electricity consumer protection and licensee performance standards are not well enforced.

“You see a situation where consumers pay for electricity not supplied and their rights abused.

“If the bank wants to recover their money, the consumers also want to recover the money that they have been cheated for,” he said.

Mr Okorie called on the Consumer Protection Council and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to ensure everything was done to protect electricity consumers.

He also appealed to power stakeholders to ensure a stable power supply to reduce the cost of production of goods and services.

(NAN)