President Buhari Sacks AEDC Management, Approves Interim Governing Board

President Muhammadu Buhari has sacked the management of the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) for failure to resolve circumstances which culminated into its workers strike and subsequent blackouts within Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja and adjoining states.

Further, he approved appointment of interim management to oversee the operations of AEDC while resolving the cause of the workers strike.

This is even as power supply has immediately been restored with Abuja and other franchise areas of the AEDC following the presidential intervention.

A statement from the Ministry of power reads:

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the suspension of the management of Abuja Electricity Distribution Company AEDC, and a new interim governing board appointed to oversee the day to day operations of the electricity distribution company, following the recent industrial action embarked on by its staff over non payment of arrears of pensions, allowances, salaries and promotion.

The sack of the management team conveyed by the presidency to the Federal Ministry of Power takes immediate effect.

The minister of power Aliyu Abubakar and the minister of state power Goddy Jedy Agba had earlier on intervened through dialogue with the ministry of labour, Bureau of Public Enterprise, and the Nigerian union of Electricity Employees, NUEE, to resolve and call off the 14 hours strike action.

Recall, the Federal Capital Territory FCT, Kogi, Nasarawa, Kaduna and parts of Edo states were in total black out between 7 am in the morning to about 8 pm on Monday following an industrial action by the staff of AEDC.

The presidential directives as conveyed has also directed the Bureau of Public Enterprises to set up a new management team of the AEDC.

However in a memorandum of understanding MOU, jointly signed by the Minister of state power, Goddy Jedy Agba; the chairman Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission NERC, Sanusi Garba; Director General Bureau of Public Enterprises, Alex Okoh; Comrade Joe Ajaero on behalf of the union, the Federal government has ordered the suspension of the strike, gave 21 days within which the outstanding emoluments and entitlements of staff will be paid.

Government has described the non performance and incompetence of the AEDC as a National embarrassment, saying the suspension of the management team subsist until further notice.