According to the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), the Federal Government received N130 billion from different privatization, commercialization, and asset optimization efforts during the past four years.
This was revealed Tuesday in a conversation with journalists in Abuja by BPE Director-General Alex Okoh.
According to him, the BPE’s mandate includes cost reductions achieved through sector improvements in addition to privatization revenues.
He stated: “The sector reforms that we have carried out, apart from making life a lot easier for the citizens, also conserved funds for the Federal Government. This is because ordinarily there would have been subventions paid out to those assets and enterprises that have been reformed to be more commercial in their operations.”
Okoh used the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) as an illustration, claiming that it has been unbundled. He claimed that NIPOST property and NIPOST transport and logistics are now separate from the postal service. He stated that the two organizations would start operating on January 1, 2023.
“We just concluded the recruitment of the management staff of the two entities. They will become operational from the 1st of January next year. The implication of that is that subvention from the fiscal purse that would have been going to the service will no longer go there, and that is saved on the part of government.”
With the completion of the sale of five National Independent Power Plants, he expressed optimism that the BPE will exceed the N260 billion predicted in the 2023 budget (NIPPs).
“We are reaching some understanding with the state governments for the sale of five power plants. That is what has dragged this transaction for the past two years,” he said, adding: “Thankfully as at last week, we were able to resolve with the governors. So, we are likely to start the financial opening of the bids before this year runs out. The proceeds themselves will come in the first quarter of next year.”
“We project that in the first quarter of next year, that is by March, we would be able to exceed the expectations of the budget, which is N260 billion. Let me also add that from the projected sum from the sale of the assets, the portion that will become available for the funding of the Federal Government is 47 per cent while 53 per cent will go to states because the assets are not federal assets but federation assets,” he said.
Regarding the energy distribution firms (DisCos), Okoh said that it is incorrect to claim that the federal government gained control of the DisCos.
“It is not a government takeover of the core investors because that will negate the process of privatisation itself. It is purely a commercial transaction between a lender and a borrower. A borrower in this case is the core investor in the 60 per cent shares of the DisCos.”
“According to the loan agreement, the banks are to repossess the DisCos should the core investors fail to pay back their loans. That is what has happened. In some quarters, people say government has taken over DisCos. Nothing of such happened. The banks were allowed to step in to exercise their rights.”
