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Seeks solutions to persistent attacks
From Isaac Anumihe, Abuja
The federal government has spent over N8.8 billion to repair and put into functional use transmission towers vandalised across the country.
This disclosure was made on Tuesday, 26 November 2024, by the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Engineer Suleiman Ahmed Abdulaziz, at the Quarterly Power Sector Working Group meeting in Abuja.
The Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, also disclosed that the Federal Government was working in collaboration with the World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB) to make electricity available to 50 million Nigerians by the year 2030.
Abdulaziz, who was represented by the Executive Director, Transmission Service Provider (TSO) of TCN, Engineer Olugbenga Emmanuel Ajiboye, said that between 13 January 2024 and now, 128 transmission towers have been destroyed by vandals or bandits across the country.
He lamented that when the vandals were apprehended and handed over to the police for prosecution, they were bailed and would return and continue with the vandalism.
“As I talk to you today, 128 of our towers have been destroyed by either vandals or bandits. To date, we have spent about N8.8 billion, by our estimation, to put them back to full and functional use. It is so sad that each time the vandals are caught and taken to the police for prosecution, the police will book them for theft, instead of vandalism, and they will be bailed. If they are charged for vandalism, they cannot be bailed, but this is where we are.
In a statement, the Special Adviser to the Minister of Power on Strategic Communication and Media Relations, Bolaji Tunji, said that many of them have been arrested, but each time they are bailed because the police often book their cases as theft.
“When the Shiroro-Mando-Kaduna towers were destroyed, we had to get full military escorts for our contractors to get the transmission lines and towers restored, and in some cases, they would tell us that we could only work for two hours on some days. In some instances, they would even tell us that it was not safe to move there. How do we get out of this? How can we deliver electricity to Nigerians under these terrible circumstances? These are part of the challenges we are facing in the power sector,” Abdulaziz said.
The Power Minister, who was represented by his Chief Technical Adviser, Mr Adedayo Olowoniyi, said the Nigerian government was working with the World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB) to get electricity access for 300 million Africans by the year 2030.
He said the Power Ministry was collaborating with its finance counterpart to achieve this.
“Mission 300 is being driven by the World Bank and the African Development Bank, and it is a project that will provide electricity to 300 million Africans, and Nigeria will have 50 million beneficiaries from this. Nigeria has a large population that is without electricity, and this is a great opportunity for us to be part of this process. The compact document will be signed by our President, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in Tanzania in January 2025. We worked extensively with the World Bank, the AfDB and the Ministry of Finance to develop the document with all the countries that will be participating in it.
“The most important thing is that we have to drive the process ourselves through private and public sector participation. We will do it through the solar farm system, mini and micro grids, grid extension and connection.
“The reality is that it is not actually feasible, based on the resources we have, to extend the grid to all Nigerians. Firstly, from the funding point of view, and secondly, it may not be commercially viable to begin to talk of grid extension to those parts that are not viable, but that does not mean that we should not deliver electricity to them, which is their right and part of the dividends of democracy. But we will start with the home solar system in those areas where the grid may not work,” the minister said.