Opinions

Osinbajo: Senator Adeyeye And His Dishonest Thesis By Ajibola Basiru

I have been representing Osun Central Senatorial District in the Senate Chamber of the National Assembly. Nonetheless, I find it curious that a news organ will not know that the Spokesperson of the Senate is the Senator representing Osun Central Senatorial District.

Published

3 years ago

May 14, 2022

Sunday Osanyintuyi

I read with deep interest an article published in Premium Times by my predecessor in the Senate as the representative of Osun Central Senatorial District, Senator Professor Sola Adeyeye. I believe the description of him at the foot of the article as “the senator for Osun Central in the National Assembly” is clealy erroneous as since June 2019, I have been representing Osun Central Senatorial District in the Senate Chamber of the National Assembly. Nonetheless, I find it curious that a news organ will not know that the Spokesperson of the Senate is the Senator representing Osun Central Senatorial District.

The central thesis of Senator Adeyeye is that Professor Yemi Osinbajo is the preferred aspirant of President Mohammadu Buhari on the account of what he considered to be the loyalty of Professor Yemi Osinbajo to the President and alleged inadequacies of other aspirants particularly Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

In pursuing this thesis for which he is apparently expressing the eventual triumph of Professor Osinbajo, he predicated his thesis on the following contentions: that a person can only attain the office of the President if he is supported by those he referred to as the establishment: that religion has almost lost relevance ultimately in the Nigeria political context; that the President was referring to Professor Osinbajo when he answered the question on who is the favourite among the aspirants in a live television interview; that President Buhari will anoint Professor Osinbajo as appreciation of the later’s loyalty; that most Buhari men are against Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu; and of course making defamatory and denigrating remarks against Asiwaju Tinubu.

The Theory of Establishment as the only route to the Presidency appears to be the typification of Nigerian democracy by the writer. Senator Adeyeye asserted and I think rather firmly that “if the establishment does not want you, you can never win the presidency”. I am at a loss to see the factual and empirical basis for this assertion in view of the recent political history of Nigeria that saw the presidency of President Buhari dislodging an incumbent President and a political party that has controlled the Presidency for about 16 years before the 2015 electoral loss. Which establishment want President Buhari and the APC in 2015. I see here a clear attempt to use a banal assertion to becloud the spirited efforts of the coalition that ripened to the APC and the struggle of our leaders like President Buhari, Chief Bisi Akande, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Chief Ogbonnaya Onu among others that ensure the presidency for the APC against all odds. Perhaps, Segun Adeniyi’s book with the title “Against the Run of Play” comes to mind.

Another banal assertion by the Distinguished Senator is that “religion as a factor in Nigerian political outcomes is overrated, especially at the national level.” Beyond this mere assertion, I am yet to see the empirical study that support the assertion. His further assertion that “when it matters, realpolitik always trumps religion” leaves the gaping questions of “when realpolitik matter?” and “who determines when realpolitik matters?” I see in the assertion an overly dangerous assumption that mass of the people and their opinions can be easily discounted in a democratic polity. To dismiss with a stroke of pen the possible effects of religion in a largely traditional society like ours in democratic choices is far from being profound. Is the Senator oblivious of the fact that Professor Yemi Osinbajo became Vice President in 2105 largely due to the orchestrated campaign again a Muslim/Muslim ticket because President Buhari was perceived to be an Islamic extremist and hence the party needed a Pastor from the South West to ensure the candidacy is sellable to the southerners?

My sense in reading the article is that people are outrightly discounted in our democratic enterprise, what matters from his theory is the predisposition of what he termed the “establishment”. Therefore, the mission for the Distinguished Senator is simple, market the aspiration of Professor Osinbajo and make disparaging and even outright defamatory assertions against other aspirants, particularly Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to curry the favour, nay the endorsement of “the establishment” for his aspirant. I indeed find very interesting that the Senator readily asserted with apparent finality “that Nigeria is not a land of political revolution.” These are indeed very interesting times!

According to Professor Adeyeye, “If the North thought Osinbajo a problem on religious grounds, he wouldn’t have been accepted as the vice president to a Buhari as president”. So, we are being told that it is the “North” that accepted Osinbajo as the Vice-President? Are we being taken on a journey of amnesia on how Professor Osinbajo became the Vice President by mere assertion and deliberate distortion? So, it is the “Northern establishment” that suo motu “notice(d) the genius behind the string of legal victories – Professor Yẹmí Osìnbàjò” and his emergence is not part of the negotiated political arrangements with our party Leaders in the South West after the victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC)?

While, I am not denying the astuteness of Professor Osinbajo as a legal scholar, to simply attribute his emergence as the Vice President to being “noticed” by the “Northern establishment” as a “genius” is to distort and deliberately falsify political development and history we all know and partook in.

The writer is obviously claiming to have conducted census of the President Buhari’s foot soldiers against Asiwaju Bola Tinubu as he claimed “let him name one Buhari foot soldier in Tinubu’s camp and I will name a hundred that are not there”. Perhaps he can oblige the public with result of his census of anti Tinubu Buhari foot soldiers to back his assertions! In making comment on President Buhari’s comment that the presidency is not for sale to the highest bidder, perhaps the Senator is oblivious of the fact that the President has access to information of the camp already reported as wooing delegates with cash gifts in Naira and Dollar. Surely, we wise citizens are paying attention!

That the Senator is not content with selling his aspirant to those he called “the establishment” without attacking Asiwaju is revealed by this obviously deprecatory and defamatory assertion unfortunately penned by a personality I have so much respect for:

“Yes, Tinubu has the structure, he has amassed the money and is already throwing it around left, right and centre, but the truth is that many are just fleecing him at the moment. Many signals within the party and within the establishment indicate he is on a hiding to nothing. Many see Tinubu as a greedy blackmailer who must be kept away from Aso Rock because he has the capacity to create an entirely different political patronage structure that can alienate the ‘Class of 1966’.”

The above remarks revealed a desperate move to disparage the character and reputation of Asiwaju Tinubu and must be interrogated to reveal that they were made with bile and guile. Asiwaju Tinubu has been out of office since 2007 and has not held office and has never been indicted for corruption and breach of public trust. So, we can ask our Senator, when has it become a crime to be rich. Where is the evidence of Asiwaju throwing “money around left, right and centre”? Baseless allegation from a Distinguished Senator is rather mind boggling! It is rather outlandish to hide under the one finger of “many” to call Asiwaju Tinubu “a greedy blackmailer”! Let the Senator identify a single patronage given to Asiwaju Tinubu since the inception of President Buhari’s administration. Then talking of blackmail, who is Asiwaju Tinubu blackmailing? President Buhari or Professor Osinbajo or “the establishment “? It is quite unfortunate that a mind trained in science will make disparaging remarks without any evidence and hiding under unidentifiable “many”.

Apart from unfounded denigrating remarks, there was also the intention to rally the “establishment” against Asiwaju Tinubu when he commented that Asiwaju is someone “who must be kept away from Aso Rock because he has the capacity to create an entirely different political patronage structure that can alienate the ‘Class of 1966’.”

The apparent desperation of the commentator to rally the “establishment” against the candidacy of Asiwaju Tinubu was brought out with more potency when he again asserted: “Incidentally, Tinubu went full throttle to politically terminate Ambode when the latter tinkered with the patronage structure in Lagos. As far as the establishment are concerned, Tinubu has been amply rewarded with the free rein they’ve given him over Lagos and its purse strings. Giving him Aso Rock is class suicide for the establishment.”

Many issues may be raised from the above. Of what relevance is issue of Ambode to the choice of Nigerian presidency? Is it that it is “the establishment” that gifted Lagos to Asiwaju as a reward? And reward for what? The innuendo of control of purse of Lagos is another evidence of the liberty the Senator took in making defamatory assertions in his article. The assertion on “giving” out Aso Rock depicts the obvious understanding of the Senator that our democracy has become a spoil of war. Perhaps, the Senator will need to elucidate how Asiwaju Tinubu winning the Presidential election will constitute “class suicide for the establishment”. I think this is a mere exercise in scaremongering and calling a dog a bad name to kill it.

I don’t think it is necessary to comment on equally defamatory assertions against Godwin Emefiele, the Central Bank Governor, as it has become a pattern in coming against any perceived opponent of the writer’s aspirant. However, I find it rather strange the “new revelation” that the late Abba Kyari “was said” to have been working closely with Tinubu to frustrate the nomination of Professor Osinbajo as the Vice President in 2019. Apparently, the Senator was not sure of himself on that fact and therefore used the phrase “was said” which in legal parlance means what he stated was mere hearsay. It speaks to the motive of the commentator that such revelation could be based on what “was said! Also, as a student of logic, I cannot find the sequence in the contention that because Buhari did not replace Osinbajo as vice president in 2019 “is a strong indication that Buhari thinks him worthy of succeeding him in 2023”. That is a rather outlandish proposition!

I wouldn’t know that Distinguished Senator Adeyeye has developed talent for mind reading when he said the President was referring to Professor Osinbajo in a Channels Television interview with Maupe Ogun. However, if the Senator was cocksure of having read the mind of the President at that interview, one will think the subsequent paragraphs of his article campaigning to the President to help make the case with the “Northern establishment that Osinbajo is the best bet for Nigeria” is needless! It seems my Distinguished leader is not convinced himself of the mind reading. And I am at a loss to understand what the Senator meant when he said: “For a man who knows what Osinbajo has endured as vice president, he knew what he was talking about.” Is it that the Vice-President has been a beast of burden and Nigerian Presidency is a compensation and not about service?
Speaking about loyalty, is it the case that party leaders and supporters who are outside the government are not loyal to the government both in birthing it into power and sustaining it. The price for loyalty cannot and ought not to be exclusive preserve of those who have been in the corridor of power for about seven years. Can anyone in his right mind doubt the commitment and loyalty of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the emergence and sustenance of the APC and its government under the leadership of President Buhari?

Senator Ajibola Basiru Ph.D. is the Senator for Osun Central in the Senate Chamber of National Assembly.

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