Prime
Solving electricity issues may need more than a law
A person who taps service wires, tampers, damages or destroys an electricity metre to interfere with accurate metering, commits an offence, and is liable, on conviction, to a fine or imprisonment not exceeding 10 years. Photo| File
What you need to know:
- Yes, there is a need for better regulation but is the law all that is needed? Government broke up the ‘then-inefficient’ Uganda Electricity Board (UEB) to create three agencies
Last week, the ruling NRM parliamentary caucus met President Museveni, who is also its chairman, at Kololo Independence Grounds, in a closed door meeting.
The public had hoped that the meeting would concentrate on providing solutions to the escalating commodity prices and fuel.
Instead, President Museveni used it to justify the deployment of the army in neighbouring DR Congo following a spate of bombings in Kampala last year.
The army was deployed without the consent of the August House as required by law.
It’s impossible to imagine that the Commander-in-Chief will pay for his decision as some have often described Parliament as his walking stick.
The other major issue that was highlighted is the electricity Bill, which is due to be tabled in Parliament in the foreseeable future.
President Museveni is on record for being unhappy with the way the energy sector has been run since Umeme signed a 20-year concession in 2005.
The concession, which took effect in 2005 when Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited leased out its assets, will expire in 2025.
Uganda, in the negotiations, is expected to revise downwards Umeme’s return on investment, (ROI) currently at 20 per cent.
This follows a havoc-wreaking moment for Umeme in March 2018 when President Museveni asked to halt extension of the power distributor’s concession on the premise that terms such as return on investment had continued to be high thus affecting the electricity tariff.
Some of the problems that Umeme found in 2005 still exist today. While the distributor can point to reduction in power losses, access and pricing remain major challenges.
Beyond Umeme, the entire energy sector faces a crisis over widespread fraud at the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Ltd (UETCL).
An audit report indicates that between financial years 2016/2017 to 2019/2020, the energy transmitter spent an eye-watering Shs564.5billion in compensation of PAPs.
There is a need for a thorough investigation into this loss of public funds. If these losses are not paid for, the same issues will remain.
Yes, there is a need for better regulation but is the law all that is needed? Government broke up the ‘then-inefficient’ Uganda Electricity Board (UEB) to create three agencies.
The new clamour for tabling the Electricity Bill almost seeks to reverse the decision to break up UEB into generation, transmission and distribution.
DON'T MISS: 91% of Jinja power sold to industries -Umeme
However, the choice to maintain the status quo or turn to the load shedding of the 90s will need to be handled with care.
