Nineteen Seventeen Northern Consensus Movement (NSNCM) has backed the recent stand of the Northern Governors Forum, and the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) over the blackout in the region.
In a statement, the President of the movement, Dr, Awwal Abdullahi Aliyu said. “We at NSNCM are in full support with the recent communique issued at the Northern State Governors Forum meeting with the Chairmen of the Northern States Council of Emirs and Chiefs, held on Monday 28 October 2024, in the presence of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa.
“While the joint meeting of the Northern Governors Forum and the joint Traditional Council deliberated extensively on matters of common interest, the Forum, in its fifth point of the communique, summarised the issue of blackout in the North appropriately”.
NSNCM also supported with ACF’s communique which expressed a declaration of “a state of emergency on persistent power supply outage in Northern states” and cautioned against inequities in electricity distribution as a national security threat.
This is in tandem with the ACF that gave a grave situation in the North and the blackout challenges.
ACF also gave a synopsis of the electricity distribution in the whole country with a view of equitable distribution to all zones, adding: “We are all on the same payment tariffs.
The statement added: “The response made by the CDS while addressing the issue of security in relation with the blackout has put to rest banditry and insurgency as the bane of the compromised, faulty or collapsed Transmission Towers (TT).While others may have their own views, security and the curb of insurgency has seen very significant progress.
“The CDS and his team-players should not be distracted but sustain the tempo. Even the human body that regenerate itself collapses. Many factors can lead to the collapse of these TTs. They could be environmental or metal fatigue or right down structural failure due to time.
“Just like the CDS mentioned, a robust protection of these TTs and Lines by security agencies is in place, TCN (Transmission Company of Nigeria) needs to up its ante on maintenance and also to give the consumer assurance and comfort that all electricity produced is efficiently evacuated, transmitted and distributed.
Aliyu further said that “Monitoring the ‘Right of Way’, (just like the petroleum pipelines) of the TTs should be reviewed. Global Positioning System, thermal/night vision should be considered and assigned to every TT and monitored at assigned Monitoring/Control Centres. This will help in detecting which TT or TTs that need prompt and precise attention in minimum time.
“This will also help all agencies involved to deploy personnel and equipment with pinpoint accuracy to the areas that need emergency resuscitation. Mr. President, Sir, with all due respect and permission of the authors of both communiques, we submit as Annextures 1 & 2 for added literature”.
He noted that peace and development are travel companions, so is “it our responsibility to avail our movement in areas of advocacy, enlightenment and vital information dissemination.
“Mr. President Sir, we at NSNCM wish you note that and without prejudice to anyone one section, that the whole country is like the human anatomy, where all vital organs work in tandem to keep the body functioning”.
