By Eshioromeh Sebastian
The ruling All Progressives Congress and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar are again at odds over President Bola Tinubu’s handling of the power sector, with the party’s presidential campaign council defending the President’s record and Atiku demanding that he account for the promise of stable electricity he made three years ago.
The exchange, conducted through statements on Sunday, comes as homes and businesses across the country continue to grapple with unstable supply more than three years after Tinubu told Nigerians during the 2023 campaign that they would have steady power and no longer pay estimated bills.
The APC Presidential Campaign Council, in its response issued by its spokesperson and Minister of Solid Minerals, Dele Alake, argued that the President’s pledge should be read in full, including the caveat that he would explain any shortfall before asking for a second term.
Alake quoted the President’s words at the time: “Whichever way, by all means necessary, you will have electricity, and you will not pay for estimated bills anymore. A promise made will be a promise kept. If I don’t keep the promise and I come for a second term, don’t vote for me, unless I give you adequate reasons why I couldn’t deliver.”
According to the council, recent commentary has lifted the pledge without its concluding condition. It said, “Some recent public commentary has reproduced the campaign pledge without its concluding qualification: that should he fall short, he would owe Nigerians an adequate explanation before seeking their support for a second term.
“A fair assessment of the pledge should consider the full statement alongside the administration’s record since 2023. This record should be assessed against measurable improvements in electricity supply, metering, infrastructure and market stability.
“While fixing the power sector crisis remains unfinished, the President is working consistently to deliver on his promise to Nigerians, and his commitment to face the challenges head on has never diminished.”
The council listed what it described as concrete steps taken since Tinubu took office, beginning with the signing of the Electricity Act 2023 within two weeks of his inauguration.
It said the law moved power from the Exclusive List and allowed states to generate, transmit and distribute electricity, with Lagos, Enugu, Abia, Ekiti, Oyo, Kaduna and Niger already setting up their own regulatory agencies.
It also said the administration had taken on over N6tn in legacy debts built up between 2015 and 2025, launched the Presidential Metering Initiative to close a gap affecting more than seven million customers, and metered over 1.5 million customers in three years.
On tariffs, the council said the government adjusted rates towards cost reflective levels to improve market liquidity while putting measures in place to shield low income consumers.
It added that the Rural Electrification Agency had connected universities, hospitals and rural communities to solar power, and that plans were afoot to modernise the over 60 year old Osogbo Grid Control Centre and build an East West super grid.
Alake also pointed to a N4tn bond programme set up to settle verified debts owed to 21 power generating companies and gas suppliers. He said, “The first and second tranches of the bond programme have raised over N1.2 trillion to settle part of the N4 trillion verified legacy debt.
“President Tinubu has repositioned the power sector and reduced market risk for future investment. The impact of this intervention is becoming evident in Gencos’ ability to make new investments to upgrade power plants.
“Just a few days ago, Geregu Power Plc announced investments in new power transformers to enhance operations at the Geregu 1 Power Plant. Other firms are making similar investments.”
The council said Tinubu inherited the Presidential Power Initiative from his predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, reviewed the agreement and signed an Acceleration Agreement in December 2023 with German partners to speed up work on the transmission grid.
It said, “By December 2024, the FEC approved the contract for the first batch of five TCN substations in key load centres to be upgraded to enhance electricity supply to industrial and private consumers in the areas. These projects are now being completed and will be commissioned before the end of the administration’s first term.”
A second batch approved in June 2026 will build eight new substations and upgrade four existing ones, the council said, explaining that power projects depend on equipment with long lead times and cannot be delivered overnight. It maintained that Tinubu would present both his achievements and the outstanding challenges to Nigerians when he seeks re-election in 2027.
Atiku, the Nigeria Democratic Congress presidential candidate, was unmoved. In a statement by the Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Phrank Shaibu, he said the government could not hide behind legislation, committees, bond programmes and project approvals.
“Nigerians have lived through those four years. They do not need his campaign council to interpret his words for them. They need him to answer for them,” Atiku said.
He took particular aim at the bond programme, arguing that settling old debts was not the same as adding new capacity. “Paying old debts is not the same as building new power infrastructure. Bonds cannot be presented as a substitute for power in people’s homes,” he said.
The former vice president alleged that the administration had not built any new generation infrastructure of its own and questioned why consumers were still paying premium rates for unreliable supply under the band system.
He said Band A customers pay about N209.50 per kilowatt hour before Value Added Tax, with other bands paying different rates depending on location and distribution company. “Across every band, the same hardship endures: the power fails, but the bill arrives,” he added.
Atiku promised that if elected, he would work with state governments and regulators to scrap the band system and replace it with what he called a fairer, transparent and affordable tariff framework that protects households while holding distribution companies to account for service quality.
He also demanded clarity on the plan to end electricity subsidies from 2027, despite assurances that tariffs would not rise immediately. “Nigerians are entitled to a clear answer: what will happen to their bills when the subsidy ends?” he asked.
The former vice president further flagged the five per cent surcharge under the Nigeria Tax Act on certain fossil fuels, including petrol and diesel, warning of an added energy related burden on consumers.
Nigeria’s power sector has struggled with weak generation, transmission constraints, distribution bottlenecks, gas supply problems and heavy financial obligations across the value chain.
The Electricity Act 2023 decentralised regulation and opened the door for states to run their own markets, but repeated tariff adjustments, metering gaps and unreliable supply remain sore points for households and businesses.
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