Minister of Power and Steel, Dr. Olu Agunloye, has ordered the National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) to arrest the deteriorating state electricity supply in the country.

At a meeting with the NEPA Managing Director, Mr. Joseph Makoju, Executive Directors and general managers in Abuja yesterday, Agunloye told the staff that the Federal Government was very unhappy about the unstable power supply in recent times in the country.

" My ministry is getting worried that the gains of the last 40 months may be swept away before our eyes if care is not taken", he stated.

The minister said though the seeming deterioration of the current power supply might be attributed to inadequate funding, sabotage by political opponents, inefficiency within NEPA and unplanned power consumption patterns, it was up to the management of the organisation to "devise practical measures to ensure power stabilization, adequate monitoring of all installations and increased effectiveness in the power sector.

Agunloye urged NEPA to ascertain factors affecting the authority's services and efficiencies, factors necessary to maintain and boost power supply, surveillance, monitory and security requirement, customer services and relations, public enlightenment and community involvement.

While expressing government's appreciation for the efforts of the management and staff of the authority in the last four years aimed at implementing the mandate of the President on the provision of electricity for Nigerians, the minister, charged NEPA to urgently consider and implement further strategies to stabilize power supply. He asked the management to report to him progress being made on a daily basis.

In his speech, the MD of NEPA, Mr. Makoju promised that the organisation would adopt new strategies that would improve power supply, adding that his management is going back to the drawing board to map out plans to achieve the objective.

He also pledged to brief the minister on the measures adopted and progress recorded. He blamed the precarious situation in power supply on the vandalization of NEPA facilities nationwide and urged Nigerians to cooperate with the authority in fishing out the perpetrators of such acts.

Earlier, the Chairman of the Board of the Directors of NEPA, Alhaji Shehu Ndanusa, expressed the support of the members of the board to the Management's decision to recover all debts owed NEPA by government agencies and parastatals.