Opinions

5G, God’s Generals And The Hordes Of Mordor, By Femi Fani-Kayode

Published

5 years ago

April 7, 2020

I commend Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, whom I have never spoken to or met, for courageously speaking the truth to our nation and to his flock concerning unfolding events in the world.
If others do not understand, appreciate or accept his message and submissions that is entirely their problem and not his.
Thankfully yours truly, together with millions of others from all over the world, most certainly do.
The truth is that there are very few real men of God and genuine Evangelical and Pentecostal Christian Pastors that will disagree with him but I guess there are some who have a different agenda, who wish to play to the public gallery and who have decided to walk the easy path by denying the obvious.
If you do not understand what is happening in the world today please read more widely and do more research. The Bible says “knowledge is power”.
Do not limit yourself to your imperfect understanding or faulty interpretation of the scriptures. As a matter of fact do not limit your knowledge to the scriptures alone. Read more and read widely and the light of knowledge will guide you and lead you on the path of truth.
Needless to say there is far more to all that is going on in the world today than meets the eye.
You are not spreading fear by speaking truth no matter how bitter that truth may be. Truth brings light, hope, understanding and ultimately freedom from ignorance and bondage: it does not bring fear.
If you cannot understand what is happening then hold your peace and don’t condemn others that are trying to explain it as best as they can.
You may disagree with them but do not insult or condemn them because no-one sees or knows it all. We only see in part.
What is totally unacceptable though is for you to deny the whole concept of the “end-times” and act as if that process has not begun. Even the unbelievers recognise the veracity of this bitter truth and even they know that the world is on the threshold of something different and new.
As far as I am aware no-one, including Oyakhilome, has said that the end of the world has come or that the Anti-Christ has already arrived or that he would arrive anytime soon.
My own view is that we still have a very long way to go before that calamitous event occurs but that does not mean that the world is not preparing for it or that satan is not doing his best through his agents and kingdom to effect it.
That does not mean that there is not an evil force that is operating in the world and that is co-ordinating events in a well-organised, purposeful and systematic manner in order to implement and establish his evil purpose and will.
To deny that would mean denying the Holy Bible itself. Such a view would fly in the face of 5000 years of Judeo-Christian preaching, teaching and philosophy.
Most important of all is to recognise that no-one has denied the fact that our Lord and Saviour will make a way for His own and deliver them through the great event known as the “Rapture” before His final and dramatic return.
To suggest that the Bible is a lie and that the end-times are not an issue that we should discuss or be concerned about appears to me to be nothing but, at best, an attempt to be politically correct and, at worse, a shameless display of cowardice and ignorance.
Say or think what you like about Covid 19, 5G, Bill Gates, Elon Musk, the Corona vaccine, the Illuminati, the New World Order, the Pope, the Deep State, Artificial Intelligence, the Bilderburg Group, the Bohemian Grove, the One World Religion or the One World Economy and believe whatever you will.
It changes absolutely nothing and it cannot bury the truth or stop God’s counsel and plan from unfolding.
Yet to be candid, what is inexplicable and utterly indefensible is for a “man of God” to dismiss the provisions and words of the Holy Bible in the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelations as a mere “conspiracy theory”.
You either believe the Word of God or you do not. Scripture cannot be broken and the end-time prophecies shall be fulfilled.
Covid 19 will come and go and so will 5G and all sorts of other things that will be equally disturbing and shocking will come after them.
It is certainly not the end of the world but what we are witnessing is perhaps the beginning of a new era which will eventually lead to a New World Order and the eventual return of our Lord Jesus Christ. That should not bring fear but rather it ought to bring inspiration, confidence, faith and joy.
For any “man of God” to play this down and question the calling and integrity of other men of God for understanding the times and recognising this irrefutable and incontrovertible fact is irresponsible and unacceptable.
If you do not know what is going on, if you do not have the courage of your convictions or if you are incapable of warning your sheep about the perilous times that we are living in and prepare their minds for the obvious challenges that lie ahead then please hold your peace and do not deter others that are clearly being led by the Holy Spirit from doing so.
Do not deny the bitter truth in return for the applause of the world and men and do not seek to undermine or condemn anyone that is courageous enough to speak it.
You are undoubtedly one of the Lord’s end-time generals. I have always liked, looked up to and respected you and for many decades I have followed your teachings and ministry.
You have always inspired me and millions of others all over the world with your commitment to the gospel and your courage and diligence.
Despite the fact that I believe that you erred badly on this matter my admiration for and reverence of you remains intact. You are a great servant of the Most High God and I would never lose sight of that fact even if I believe that you may have got things wrong on this occasion.
Out of respect for your calling, your ministry and your revered office I have refrained from mentioning or writing your name in this contribution but you know who you are.
You also know that despite all I will always love you and wish you well.
At this juncture permit me to echo the question that a young and evidently wise Facebook friend of mine, Mr. Ogbolu Stephen, asked on his Facebook wall. He asked,
“Did the disciples bash or mock themselves for what they preached? Why will Pastors be doing so now?”
You will agree with me that Stephen has asked a pertinent and profound question. After all when Peter, the greatest of the Lord’s disciples, rebuked Paul, the greatest of all the Apostles, he did not insult him, seek to undermine his credibility or seek to destroy his ministry.
When a well-accomplished, much-loved, great and highly respected leader of the Body of Christ and one of God’s end-time generals such as you seeks to admonish or correct another such as Oyakhilome this must be done with restraint, dignity, respect and decorum lest the unbelievers use it as an opportunity to mock, ridicule, confuse and divide our ranks and the flock.
Yet if the truth must be told, to publicly endorse and support the deployment of 5G when every single serious and credible man and woman of God that I know and that I have spoken to from ALL over the world has privately expressed grave concerns and reservations about its implications for humanity, its likely effect on the health of human beings and the environment and its it’s obvious relevance to the end-time prophecies, is dangerous and reckless.
It also raises serious and profound questions about your motivations, your motives and your objectives which I choose not to go into here.
You say that “pandemics come and go” yet you never bothered to find out what the real causes of the three major pandemics that took place in the world over the last 150 years were and what their link was to what you described as “major technological advancement”.
For example are you are aware of what really caused the horrendous “Spanish flu” pandemic in 1918 and do you know that it had nothing to do with the Spanish people or Spain but everything to do with the massive and unprecedented doses of radiation that was pumped into the world’s atmosphere as a consequence of the then newly-adopted system of radio waves and radio frequencies?
50 million people died as a consequence of the implementation of that “major technological advancement” and the Spanish flu which came as a consequence of it.
Is it not worth finding out what actually caused their deaths rather than dismiss it as just another pandemic with flu-like symptoms? Do we not owe the dead, and indeed the living, that much?
The same goes for the two other major pandemics that took place over the last 150 years. I urge and challenge you to do the research rather than condemn and seek to discredit those that have taken the pains to do it for you.
You sir can do far better than that and those of us that have always loved and respected you expect and demand far more and far better from you.
I urge you to remember that the Living God whom we live for and serve specifically and clearly warned us about the gradual unfolding of the strange and difficult times that we are witnessing today in the Holy Bible and that He went to great pains to describe them vividly through His servant John who, by the blessed and divine inspiration of the Holy Spirit, wrote the Book of Revelations on the island of Patmos 2000 years ago!
The Lord did this to prepare our minds for what was to come so that we would not be taken by surprise or be frightened by what is clearly bigger than us and far beyond us.
His word and His assurance of an expected end and His great and triumphant return at the end of the time of “Tribulation” is our life-line and our hope: it is our strength, our sword, our shield and our glory. I urge you not to lose sight of this. I implore you not to forget or dismiss the words and visions of John.
I beg you in the name of all that is holy and that you hold dear not to encourage and mislead others into ignoring the scriptures and taking a fatal bite out of the poisonous fruit of the forbidden tree and out of the evil apple of the modern-day “Tree of Knowledge” because it leads to nothing but death and destruction.
Worse of all is the fact that if you insist on doing so the Lord will hold you accountable and responsible for misleading His sheep and putting their safety and souls in jeopardy and peril.
The Church is already on the ropes in the world today and this is not the time to expose your fellow clerics, pastoral colleagues and co-believers to public ridicule and national opprobrium. This is not the time to stand in agreement with the hordes of Mordor, the sons of perdition, the daughters of Belial and the seed of satan.
This is not the time to endorse the Luciferean intrigues, cunning deceptions, malevolent machinations, deadly snares and evil mendacities of those that are clearly from the pit of hell and that serve the Morning Star, the Son of the Dawn and the Whispering Serpent.
Permit me to conclude this contribution with the following.
You glibllly asked why it is that “if 5G is the cause of coronavirus why is it not in his (Oyakhilome’s) village where there is no 5G?”
I shall do you the honor of answering your question with another. Is it written anywhere that what is clearly a man-made virus which may have been designed to be a biological weapon and which likely emerged from a secret laboratory in Wuhan, China after the full deployment of 5G in that city, cannot and will not spread like wild-fire to areas of the world where 5G has not been deployed, established or made operational?
Your question appears to me to be too basic and simplistic for a man of your knowledge and understanding. It dimisinshes you to no end.
The creation and release of this particular virus was designed to act as a smokescreen for an even greater and more sinister cause and agenda and that cause and agenda is the introduction of what will be an utterly deadly vaccine and the establishment of what will be a modern and technologically-advanced new 5th generation communication system with its heavy package and load of deadly and destructive radiation.
These secret modern-day tools of destruction are not designed to remain in the place that they were manufactured. They are designed to spread like the plague throughout the entire world in order to pave the way and justify the implementation of a greater evil that is to come.
Is this bitter truth so implausible and inconceivable to you? Have you no idea how deep, profound and cunning satan is in his ways and devices?
Quite apart from that the coronavirus is spread by human beings and human contact whilst the death and poison that 5G causes as a consequence of its direct application and usage will come only after it is fully deployed in various parts of the world.
It is at that point that you will see birds drop out of the sky, trees and grass dying, fish floating and human beings dropping dead like flies. And of course they will tell you that the only answer for this strange and inexplicable phenomenon is Bill Gates’ long awaited magic vaccine which, sadly, will lead humanity into an even greater abyss and bigger graveyard.
Simply put the coronavirus is merely the light appetiser whilst the establishment and deployment of 5G is the main course and the introduction of the vaccine will be the glorious and resplendent dessert. This indeed is a deadly meal.
Those that created the problem and anticipated humanity’s predictable reaction are now the ones that are providing the remedy and the “solution” to the problem that they created. Isn’t that an irony?
This strategy is known in philosophical circles as the Hegelian dialectic and in layman’s terms it is described as the concept of “problem, reaction, solution”.
It is a highly ruthless and efficient strategy and tactic and it is designed to fool humanity and gain control and domination of the world. It is pertinent to note that its greatest strength and power lies in its cultic and total secrecy.
Those that are behind it will use every power and every tool at their disposal to keep their activities secret and to tarnish and destroy anyone that seeks to expose them.
The objective of the hidden hand of the dark world that is behind all this is to create a massive, transnational global and Orwellian state with a drastically reduced population, a New World Order and a One World Religion which will be run by Artificial Intelligence and presided over by the Anti-Christ and his master satan. That is where this is all heading.
The process is gradual and it may still take another fifty to one hundred years, or perhaps even more, but it shall surely come to pass. It cannot be stopped because it is prophetic.
The hope of the Church and the Believer lies in the Word of God, His promise to shield and deliver His own, the coming “Rapture” and His eventual return as the all-conquering and avenging glorious Messiah.
And whether anyone believes it or not, He SURELY will return because He is full of love and faithful to His word. Shalom.

Opinions

President Tinubu and Baba Adebanjo: A ‘Ringside’ Story

Published

3 weeks ago

February 22, 2025

Seyi Babalola

By Tunde Rahman

Since Afenifere leader Pa Ayo Adebanjo passed away on February 14 at 96, many have praised his significant contributions to Nigeria as a frontline nationalist, a key role player in the politics of the first and second republics, and an uncompromising devotee of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo.

Active in the First Republic Action Group, the Second Republic Unity Party of Nigeria, and Alliance for Democracy from 1999, Baba Adebanjo fought tirelessly for democracy. He consistently advocated for true federalism and the country’s political and economic restructuring based on the 1963 Republican Constitution.

Pa Adebanjo was also a well-known activist who stood for equity, truth, and justice. He fought against all forms of injustice and oppression including military dictatorship.
In this respect, I recall his relationship with President Bola Tinubu.

When Asiwaju Tinubu, then a founding chieftain of the defunct AD, decided to run for Lagos governorship, Pa Adebanjo fully supported him, championing transparency in the process that produced him as the candidate of his party. Despite the initial opposition within the party, Baba Adebanjo and other young party members opted for open party primaries, helping Tinubu to emerge as the candidate. Tinubu went on to win the governorship election and was inaugurated on May 29, 1999.

Grateful for the support, Asiwaju maintained a strong relationship with Baba Adebanjo. Even when their political paths diverged, Tinubu held Baba in high regard. The President said this much in his incisive tribute to Pa Adebanjo, which I quote in part thus:
“In moments of national crisis, Baba’s courage shone brightest. When democracy hung in the balance after the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, he joined the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) as one of the leading voices against military dictatorship, helping to galvanise a movement that became the bedrock of our collective struggle to reclaim democratic governance.

“His unwavering commitment to truth and justice extended to my journey as a governorship candidate in 1999. Baba Adebanjo’s steadfast support was instrumental in my election as Governor of Lagos State under the platform of the Alliance for Democracy.

“Though our political paths diverged in later years, my respect and admiration for him never wavered. Until his death, I shared a deep personal bond with Baba Adebanjo; he was like a father figure.”

Many in Tinubu’s position might have taken issue with Baba, who sometimes openly criticised him. But not Asíwájú. As an Omoluabi—a person of good character—Tinubu respects elders and institutions, giving honour where it’s due.

How do I know President Tinubu highly regarded Baba Adebanjo? As a journalist and editor, I was well-known to Baba Adebanjo. I interacted with and interviewed him on many occasions during my active years in journalism. So when I became Asiwaju’s Media Adviser, I became the envoy of sorts, the message-bearer for both. Baba Adebanjo would telephone me, saying, “Rahman, Rahman, so fun Oga e pe mo fe ri. To ba wu yin ke wa, to ba wu yin ke ma wa. Tie na la fe so fun,” meaning “Tell your Principal I would like to see him. If he likes, let him honour my invitation. It’s to his benefit if he comes.”

We visited Baba at his residence in Lekki, Lagos, several times. On other occasions, Baba called at Bourdillon, the Ikoyi residence of Asiwaju, along with his entourage.

There is, however, a hilarious and instructive story about the two, which speaks to the admiration and high regard President Tinubu had for Baba, which essentially is the focus of this article. It was during the 90th birthday of Baba Adebanjo, sometime in April 2018. I remember vividly that that particular birthday fell on a Sunday. But a birthday colloquium came up on a Thursday, three days before the actual birthday. We had lodged in our dairy for Asiwaju, the birthday lecture, as well as other activities and events lined up to celebrate the distinguished elder statesman. While focusing on the birthday date, I forgot the preceding Thursday event at Landmark Event Centre in Victoria Island, Lagos. Luckily for me, around 9am that Thursday, the traditional ruler of Oke-Ila in Osun State, Oba Dokun Abolarin, telephoned me, saying he was in Lagos and asking if Asiwaju was coming for the birthday lecture. Knowing I had failed to alert Asiwaju about the lecture the previous night, I smelled trouble.

I immediately raced to Bourdillion in Ikoyi. When I went upstairs to see Asiwaju, he was reading newspapers, oblivious of any early morning engagement that day, particularly that of Baba Adebanjo. I informed him about the event and apologised that I had my mind set on the birthday date on Sunday. The lecture was slated for 10 am, and time was already 10 am. Asiwaju, livid, sprung to his feet. By this time, my colleague Ademola Oshodi had joined me in Asiwaju’s room. Without any prompting, we prostrated and apologised again.

Those close to President Tinubu know he is a very proficient politician in Yoruba as he is in English, complete with street lingo. Still seething in anger, Asiwaju said in Yoruba, “Hen hen, idobale yin yen ni emi ma te’ bati. Ma de ibi lecture, won a ma so pe mo moo mo pe de ni ki nba le da ijoko won ru,” meaning, “So it’s this your prostrating that will now count. I will get to the event now, and they will allege that I deliberately came late so I can cause a stir and disrupt the lecture.”

Somehow, Asiwaju quickly prepared to attend despite our tight schedule as we were meant to travel to Abuja that same day. We got to the occasion around noon after the program had been on for about two hours. One important personality I could not readily remember was on the podium.
Though we arrived late, Tinubu’s presence stirred excitement, and he delivered a heartfelt speech.

As President Tinubu predicted, his arrival caused a big stir and a temporary halt in the programme. As we made to leave, another commotion that did not subside even after our departure ensued. I suspect Asíwájú’s departure might have signaled the virtual end of the program.

That was not the end of the story, though. A couple of days later, I heard Uncle Jimi Disu, a known Asiwaju critic, on his regular programme then on Classic FM, talking about Baba Adebanjo’s birthday lecture, alleging that Asíwájú ‘sauntered’ into the programme uninvited and disrupted the birthday lecture of the nonagenarian. I could not believe my ears. I went on that program afterward to debunk what he said. I narrated what happened, that Asiwaju had tremendous respect for Baba and that he would have avoided the kind of situation that played out if I had briefed him of the timing of the programme.

This incident underscores the critical role of aides in supporting leaders to function effectively. Aides must guide them accurately, as their actions and inactions can significantly impact leadership outcomes. An oversight on my part unintentionally fueled what would have resulted in animus between Baba Adebanjo and Tinubu.

-Rahman is Senior Special Assistant to President Tinubu on Media, Publicity and Special Duties.

Opinions

Between Japan’s Kaizen philosophy and Nigeria’s National Values Charter

Published

1 month ago

January 31, 2025

Seyi Babalola

By Temitope Ajayi

Two days after DeepSeek took the world by surprise, a Financial Times report warned that the West should be worried by how China appears to be leading the Artificial Intelligence race.

Financial Times says the emergence of DeepSeek from the shadows, catching the West unawares, is a strong indication that China has mastered the art of ‘Kaizen’.

I recall that my first encounter with Kaizen, the philosophy that underpins the rise of Japan as the Asian economic powerhouse, is about 10 years now.

Societies like China, Japan, and South Korea that anchor their development models on their culture and value systems continue to break new grounds and are far ahead in innovation and human advancement.

At the heart of Japan’s success, especially in the manufacturing and service sectors, is the work ethics that are firmly rooted in the Kaizen philosophy. ‘Kaizen’ is a Japanese word that means continuous improvement or change for the better. The quest for excellence and attention to detail have been weaved into the social and moral fabrics of Japanese society as a matter of obligation.

It is this philosophy and social imperative that the Japanese take into product designs and execution. It is, therefore, not surprising that the world sees continuous improvement in every new edition of Japanese products like Toyota automobiles.

The concept of Kaizen became popular in the United States by the 1980s when it was discovered that the performance of Japanese companies was much better than their American counterparts. It became apparent that the difference between Japanese and American companies in terms of effectiveness and operational efficiency was the application of the Kaizen principle.

Kaizen philosophy is similar to the Yoruba Omoluabi ethos. Every major ethnic group and subculture in Nigeria and Africa has its own equivalent of such value systems.

We can only imagine our pace of development and progress as a country if we develop a national value system around the virtues of excellence, honour, and integrity. This means our workmen and women will pursue excellence as second nature in everything. Politicians will embrace public service as a matter of honour, and citizens will accept integrity as an article of faith in undertakings.

Our society is hemorrhaging as a result of value degradation. It is heartbreaking how badly we have drifted because we neglected our cultural values and practices that served as the guiding principles of society.

It is the responsibility of leaders at all levels to direct society to embrace enduring values that edify and promote human development. I believe we can still recover lost grounds. This is why the efforts being made by the Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu-led National Orientation Agency to re-ignite a new wave of consciousness through the National Values Charter should be appreciated and promoted. The values charter has already been approved by the Federal Executive Council. President Bola Tinubu is leading this renewed effort to push value re-orientation to the forefront of public policy and national development agenda.

-Ajayi is Senior Special Assistant to President Tinubu on Media and Publicity

Opinions

Tinubu’s quest to overcome the power sector gridlock

Published

2 months ago

January 20, 2025

Seyi Babalola

By Temitope Ajayi

Angered by the appalling situation of Nigeria’s electricity supply sector over several decades of doing the wrong things by successive governments with no remedy in sight, even after hundreds of billions of public funds had been expended, President Muhammadu Buhari in 2018 chose a different path that had worked in other jurisdictions.

He reached out to the then German Chancellor Angela Merkel to help solve the protracted power gridlock in Nigeria. The discussion between the two leaders gave birth to the FG-Siemens Energy AG Presidential Power Initiative in 2019. Under the terms of the agreement of the Nigerian Electrification Roadmap, Siemens Energy would ramp up electricity generation in Nigeria to 25,000 megawatt in six years, in three phases, from an average of 4000 megawatts the country had been stuck with for decades.

President Buhari was quite bullish about the project such that he put it under the direct supervision of his office with his Chief of Staff, late Abba Kyari, as the directing officer. The former president who didn’t want the project to be derailed by bureaucratic bottlenecks and red-tape made sure all man-made obstacles and deliberate obstructions were bulldozed with Abba Kyari in charge.

The unfortunate demise of Kyari in 2020 arising from Covid-19 while in Germany to get the power project underway rolled back the speedy implementation of what would have been a game-changer in Nigeria’s elusive quest for a stable and reliable power supply. Nigeria’s economy had been blighted by years of poor electricity supply. From available records, Federal Government has spent over $30 billion dollars to revamp the sector in the last three decades without any substantial progress. The economy is run on generators with Nigerians spending a staggering $10billion dollars (N7.6 trillion) annually on petrol and diesel to run their generators including the cost of maintenance, according to a 2024 report, “Beyond Gensets: Advancing the energy transition in Lagos State” published by Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL).

True to his campaign promise to build on the achievements of his predecessor across all sectors and improve on governance performance in areas where it is required, President Tinubu, in demonstration of his unshaken believe in continuity of governance, took on the FG-Siemens Power Project as part of his priority projects in the energy sector.

It is necessary to state that this all-important power project had suffered undue delays since July, 29, 2020 when the Federal Executive Council approved the payment of €15.21m and N1.708bn as part of Nigeria’s counterpart funding for the offshore and onshore components of the project.

Managing Director, Siemens Energy Nigeria, Seun Suleiman, was quoted as saying then that, “Siemens Energy is committed to working with the Federal Government of Nigeria through the FGNPowerCo to see a successful implementation of the presidential power initiative. We have successfully carried out a similar project in Egypt.

“This project will transform the energy landscape of the country, and we are grateful the government has entrusted us with this notable initiative. We are capable, and we will deliver excellent results.”

In 2021, FGN Power Company, the Special Purpose Vehicle established by the Federal Government of Nigeria for the implementation of the PPI, announced the commencement of the grid network studies and power simulation training for technical experts in the Discos, TCN, NAPTIN and NERC, including provision of specialized power simulation softwares for TCN, NERC and all Discos. By December 2024, more than 100 experts across the sector have been trained on power systems simulation and network planning with skills to better manage the grid operations at various levels.
In the same year 2021, the Federal Executive Council approved the contract for the supply of 10 mobile substations and 10 power transformers by Siemens Energy for quick reinforcement of the grid as part of the pilot Phase of the project. Reports by FGN Power Company indicate that all the equipment have since been supplied and installed across the country.

However, the overall pace of the project delivery in terms of meeting timelines has not been impressive.

On assumption of office, President Tinubu saw the need to continue with the project and how timely delivery can transform the power sector for a country that desperately needs a reliable power supply for industrialisation and grow its economy. The status of the project came up at a bilateral meeting between President Tinubu and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz during the latter’s working visit to Nigeria in August 2024 in Abuja. At a follow-up engagement in Dubai in December 2024 during COP28, the Nigerian Government and Siemens Energy AG signed an accelerated performance agreement aimed at expediting the implementation of the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI) to improve electricity supply in Nigeria. The agreement that was signed by Kenny Anuwe, Managing Director/CEO of FGN Power Company and Ms. Nadja Haakansson, Siemens Energy’s Senior Vice President and Managing Director for Africa, was witnessed by President Tinubu and Chancellor Scholz.

Under the accelerated performance agreement, Siemens Energy will see to the end-to-end modernization and expansion of Nigeria’s electric power transmission grid with the full supply, delivery, and installation of Siemens-manufactured equipment.

Furthermore, the agreement will ensure project sustainability and maintenance with full technology transfer and training for Nigerian engineers at the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).

In a major demonstration of President Tinubu’s commitment to the power project and a positive shift towards execution, the President led the Federal Executive Council on December 16, 2024 to approve €161.3 million Euros for the execution of the contracts in the first batch of the Phase one of the projects across the country following earlier approval of the transaction by the Bureau of Public Procurement.

Addressing journalists after the FEC approval, an enthusiastic Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, with the renewed vigour to deliver on the project said, “at the Federal Executive Council meeting, there were basically two approvals for the Federal Ministry of Power, as I presented. The first was actually an approval for the award of contract for engineering, procurement, construction and financing for the implementation of the 331 32 KV And 132 33 KV substations upgrade under Phase One of the Presidential Initiative, popularly known as the Siemens project consequent upon completion of the pilot phase of this project.

“So, the Federal Executive Council considered it necessary for us to move forward as promised by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria at a meeting he held with the President of the Republic of Germany.”

The latest FEC approved scope of work includes upgrade of TCN substations in five locations of Abeokuta (330/132/33kV), Ayede (330/132/33kV), Offa (132/33kV), Onitsha (330/132/33kV) and Sokoto (132/33kV). These substations were carefully selected as Batch 1 of the brownfield scope of the Phase 1 projects to increase the wheeling capacity of the transmission network grid.

In the same vein, FGN Power Company will implement assets upgrade and enhancement in the distribution networks, in collaboration with the Distribution Companies (Discos) to ensure last-mile delivery of the evacuated power to industrial customers and residential consumers. These locations are load centres that are currently underserved and require swift enhancements. The execution of the project will be fast tracked and completed under the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration.

It’s important to state that the FGN Power Company has started working on other priority brownfield and Greenfield projects in target load centres across the country. Special attention is also being paid to the execution of systems and products to enhance grid resilience and stability to reduce the frequent occurrences of grid disturbances.

In December 2024, Minister of Power Adelabu commissioned the mobile substation in Saapade, a suburb of Shagamu in Ogun State. This has enhanced power evacuation and delivery to industrial customers within the Shagamu hub. Similarly, another mobile substation was commissioned at the Ajibode area of the University of Ibadan to enhance power delivery to the university community and adjoining areas. Before then, mobile substations and power transformers have been commissioned and energized in Ajah Lagos, Mando Kano, Jebba Kwara State, Okene Kogi, Amukpe Delta, Potiskum Yobe, Apo Abuja and Ihovbor Edo.

While the implementation of the Presidential Power Initiative is going on, President Tinubu has equally inaugurated the Presidential Metering Initiative, which aims to increase the rate of smart metering of all customers in a commercially sustainable manner. The roll out of the metering solutions has started. It is expected that the combined impact of assets upgrade through Presidential Power Initiative (PPI) and metering through the Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI), coupled with efforts of subnational electricity markets will bring lasting solutions to the challenges of electricity supply in Nigeria.

With President Tinubu’s committed leadership, the parlous state of the power sector will be reversed, and Nigerians and the economy will experience a new lease of life with reliable electricity supply that will geometrically increase productive activities. Indeed, the president’s strategic approach to resolving the multifaceted challenges in the power sector is yielding visible results. The restructuring of the tariff regime, intervention in the commercial imbroglio on gas supply, additional investments in infrastructure through PPI, enactment of the new Electricity Act which provides legal framework for further decentralisation of the sector and devolution of more responsibilities to the subnational governments, are all part of the renewed hope agenda for the power sector to bring sustainable solutions.

-Ajayi is Senior Special Assistant to President Tinubu on Media and Publicity