By Bolaji Ajala
THE Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, has outlined efforts at ensuring the health and safety of electricity stakeholders nationwide.

This is being done by articulating accident prevention obligations and NERC’s responsibility through the authority of Electric Power Sector Reform, EPSR Act 2005.

NERC safety analyst, Mr Abdurasheed Busari, who disclosed this recently in Lagos while presenting a paper on health and safety said the commission is ready to reduce the rate of accidents and if possible eliminate it but would need the cooperation of electricity stakeholders.

According to him, the commission’s effort to mitigate hazard and risk include gathering of data, through collection of reports, analyzed data so as to identify accident causes, hazard and risk, set and agree accident reduction targets, improvement initiatives and monitor performance, put in place compliance and enforcement measures that includes but not limited to monitoring, inspections, accident investigations, whistle blowing, training workshops, quarterly meetings, media publicity, public workshops.

Busari, who spoke at the consumer Assembly organized by the commission explained that major causes of accident as recorded by the commission includes employees bad working practices, operators disregard for safety regulations and procedures, public disregard for safety regulations (encroachment of public on PHCN Right of way) and vandalism.

He added that the effect of such accident due to public disregard for safety regulations includes but not limited to wire snap at an illegal bus stop in Port Harcourt killing 16 persons, wire snap in an area at Ikeja killing two persons trading under the high tension, the death of three persons as a result of wire snap at an area in Ibadan, electrocution of a man along Aba road, Owerri due to illegal tampering with electrical installations.

Also speaking, the analyst enumerated NERC’s responsibility under the EPSR Act to include the development and introduction of the Nigerian Electricity Health and Safety standards manual, development and enforcement of the safety code, development and enforcement of the distribution code, development and enforcement of the grid code, enlightenment of the public on safety issues and monitoring of compliance to safety standards, penalize safety standards defaulters.

Mr. Busari also stated the industry operators and their employees’ responsibility towards safety which includes compliance to the provision of EPSR Act of safety regulations and all commission codes, continually enlighten the public on safety issues, stop providing service to properties encroaching on their Right of way, maintain and replace equipments at when due and continually train their employees on health and safety issues.