Vice-President Kashim Shettima has inaugurated ad hoc committees of the National Economic Council on national electrification and polio eradication.

Mr Shettima, while inaugurating the committees on Thursday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, said Nigeria could not dream of meaningful national economic development without addressing the power sector crisis.

He urged the country’s leaders to rise above their differences to confront the power sector crisis and become part of the reincarnation of Nigeria as an industrialised nation.

Mr Shettima referred to countries with energy insufficiency challenges, such as Indonesia, India, South Africa and Uganda.

“One common thing with these countries and others in the post-industrial revolution community is that they have largely resolved the issue of energy insufficiency. 

“There is no doubt that we cannot dream of meaningful national economic development without addressing the issue in the power sector and ensuring that Nigerians have accessible, available and affordable energy,” he stated.

He acknowledged the basic challenges in the nation’s power sector, especially the national grid, which has been witnessing system collapse.

Mr Shettima, however, expressed hope that there would be significant improvement following the recent reforms in the energy sector.

He urged the national electrification ad hoc committee members to come on board and work for the nation.

Mr Shettima also urged members of the ad hoc committee on polio eradication and stakeholders to reinvigorate efforts to confront the reemergence of the disease head-on.

“If at all we have relied heavily on assistance from partners to address the devastation caused to our people by this disease, it is time to take a determined step to eradicate this disease. I am confident we can do it if we work collectively and collaboratively with partners and all the stakeholders,” he said.

Mr Shettima discouraged short-term measures in tackling polio, urging the committee members to develop long-term measures, including the local production of polio vaccines.

He said the virus kept mutating and reemerging in new forms, such as the new variant in Kano and Sokoto, but that it was heartening that these states had taken firm action to confront the new variants.

(NAN)