DisCos apologise to Nigerians over prolonged blackouts
Electricity distribution companies (DisCos) have apologised to Nigerians over persistent power shortages, acknowledging the hardship caused by weeks of prolonged blackouts across the country.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors (ANED), Sunday Oduntan, tendered the apology on Monday during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily.
“I’d like to first of all start by apologising to Nigerians. Apology is needed; it is essential because Nigerians have been taken through this problem over the past few weeks,” Oduntan said.
He criticised the renewed blame game among operators in the electricity sector, warning that disagreements between distribution companies, transmission operators, generation companies and gas suppliers were distracting attention from the underlying problems.
“Our major problem is that we have started that very wrong route that we went through between 2016 and 2019. What is that? Blame game,” he said.
Oduntan questioned conflicting explanations offered by the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) over the causes of the electricity shortages.
While NISO attributed the crisis partly to low water levels and inadequate gas supply, NNPC maintained that gas was available.
“From the NNPC statement, it is very clear that they came to tell us half-truths,” Oduntan said, urging the company to clarify whether outstanding payments were affecting gas deliveries to power generation companies.
He called on the Minister of Power to convene an urgent meeting of electricity sector stakeholders to identify the causes of the shortages and resolve the crisis.
The prolonged outages have triggered widespread frustration among households and businesses, particularly customers on Band A tariffs who are expected to receive at least 20 hours of electricity daily.
Rising petrol and diesel prices have further increased the cost of running generators, while solar power installations remain beyond the financial reach of many Nigerians.
The crisis has also renewed scrutiny of President Bola Tinubu’s 2023 campaign promise to improve electricity supply and end estimated billing.
During a meeting with the Organised Private Sector in Lagos, Tinubu had urged Nigerians to hold him accountable if he failed to fulfil his electricity pledge.
“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,” Tinubu said.