29/05/2026
It has been three years since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu promised to fix the electricity sector. In fact, he said he doesn’t fulfil t5hat promise, Nigerians should not vote him back into office. With a year to the expiration of his four-year tenure, many say that he is yet to keep the promise. Nigeria’s power sector has since independence defied odds of experts and governments’ intervention to ensure citizens enjoy constant electricity supply. The sector’s myriad problems have defied reforms by both government and private companies. This is despite the government pumping billions of naira into the sector with no commensurate results. But expert have warned that the sector won’t see the desired change if the government is not ready to take drastic measures against Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos), citizens vandalising electricity installations and electricity theft. Electricity Act yet to make difference One of the first executive actions of the president when he resumed office in 2023, was signing into law the 2023 Electricity Act that removed power sector from exclusive list into concurrent list. This was to allow state governments to play active role in the sector and allow multiple market players against the monopoly electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) enjoy in their franchise areas. It also allowed for the breakup of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) into two, enabling efficiency by allowing the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) to manage interconnectivity on the grid while the TCN operates the infrastructure. Experts hailed the signing of the act as a watershed moment for the country as it would enable competition in the electricity market and rescue Nigerians from the epileptic supply of power that they have grown to live with. Three years later, only 15 states have adopted the Act. It has also led to standoff between state regulatory agencies and DisCos as the former try to interfere in tariff fixing. Though some states have announced investment to construct power plants, the number of years they will take to be completed is uncertain for residents to enjoy their benefit. N700bn, yet millions remained unmetered The government last year approved the sum of N700bn for the provision of meters through the President Meter Initiative. The fund, which was deducted from the Federation Account, was meant to provide two million meters for Nigerians and was expected to complement the 3.2 million meters being procured through the World Bank’s Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DISREP). While the meters under DISREP are currently being disbursed, that of the PMI is yet to start, a year since it was announced. The inability to distribute the meters has left more than six million electricity customers unmetered. Many analysts say that the power sector suffers from the lack of a professional at the head. The president has favoured individuals with finance background over engineers with technical know-how of the power sector. First, it was Adebayo Adelabu, a former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and then Joseph Adejinmi Tegbe, who even though obtained his first degree in civil engineering, has worked throughout as an accountant and taxman. While Tegbe is yet to assume office after being cleared by the Senate, under Adelabu, who resigned to contest for the governorship of Oyo State, Nigeria witnessed an increase in deployment of renewable energy, especially solar, for those not on the national grid. True to his background, the minister has his voi...
