Using Critical Thinking To Solve The Power Problems Of Nigeria Economy (a Case Study Of Ogbaru Local Government Of Anambra State)

Critical thinking is not a matter of accumulating information. A person with a good memory and who knows a lot of facts is not necessarily good at critical thinking. A critical thinker is able to deduce consequences from what he knows, and he knows how to make use of information to solve problems, and to seek relevant sources of information to inform himself/herself. 

Critical thinking should not be confused with being argumentative or being critical of other people. Although critical thinking skills can be used in exposing fallacies and bad reasoning, critical thinking can also play an important role in cooperative reasoning and constructive tasks. Critical thinking can help us acquire knowledge, improve our theories, and strengthen arguments. We can use critical thinking to enhance work processes and improve social institutions.

Some people believe that critical thinking hinders creativity because it requires following the rules of logic and rationality, but creativity might require breaking rules. This is a misconception. Critical thinking is quite compatible with thinking "out-of-the-box", challenging consensus and pursuing less popular approaches. If anything, critical thinking is an essential part of creativity because we need critical thinking to evaluate and improve our creative ideas and applicable idea.

It is indisputable fact that Nigerian has one of the most problematic electricity sectors in the world, with an estimated installed electricity generation capacity of 8,644 MW, and available capacity of only approximately 3,718 MW, to cater for the needs of a population of over160 million.

By comparison, South Africa, with a population of just 50 million, has an installed electricity generation capacity of over 52,000 MW. On a per capita consumption basis, Nigeria is ranked a distant 178th with 106.21 KWh per head, – well behind Gabon (900.00); Ghana (283.65); Cameroon (176.01); and Kenya (124.68).

The historic gap between the demand for electricity and the available capacity has led to the current widespread power shortage and inefficiency and, consequently, self-generation of power by both industrial and residential consumers. The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), and the National Association of Small Scale Industries (NASSI), have estimated that their members spend an average of about N2billion (about $12 million) per week on self-power generation. To this end, the Nigerian power sector presents immense opportunities for private investment in the electricity power sector.

The project work will consider how to apply critical thinking on solving power problem in Nigeria, with special focus to Ogbaru local government area of Anambra State.

In school, the most widely used, or at least the most reputable method for solving problems is “Critical Thinking.” From understanding the works of a long dead philosopher to solving differential equations, “Critical Thinking” is like some sort of intellectual panacea. Although everyone can agree that “Critical Thinking” is usually a good thing, it is difficult to explain exactly what it is and even more difficult to teach it.

Central power stations became economically practical with the development of alternating current power transmission, using power transformers to transmit power at high voltage and with low loss. Electricity has been generated at central stations since 1882. The first power plants were run on water power or coal, and today we rely mainly on coal, nuclear, natural gas, hydroelectric, wind generators, and petroleum, with a small amount from solar energy, tidal power, and geothermal sources. The use of power-lines and power-poles have been significantly important in the distribution of electricity.

The intellectual roots of critical thinking are as ancient as its etymology, traceable, ultimately, to the teaching practice and vision of Socrates 2,500 years ago who discovered by a method of probing questioning that people could not rationally justify their confident claims to knowledge. Confused meanings, inadequate evidence, or self-contradictory beliefs often lurked beneath smooth but largely empty rhetoric. Socrates established the fact that one cannot depend upon those in "authority" to have sound knowledge and insight. He demonstrated that persons may have power and high position and yet be deeply confused and irrational. He established the importance of asking deep questions that probe profoundly into thinking before we accept ideas as worthy of belief.