The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Publicity, Bayo Onanuga, has described as ‘out of context’ the assertion that President Bola Tinubu told Nigerians he would not seek re-election if he failed to provide constant power supply to the country.
Onanuga dismissed the claims which have recently resurfaced in many circles, and explained that the statement credited to the president was conditional, and not an outright pledge.
Onanuga spoke during an interview on Arise News on Tuesday, where he further insisted that the President’s remarks on power sector reforms had been misrepresented, as it was not an outright pledge to forgo a second term.
Reports had quoted Tinubu during a business luncheon in December 2022 ahead of the 2023 presidential election, to have said, “If I don’t give you constant electricity for four years, when I come back for a second term, don’t vote for me.”
But the presidential aide argued that critics often quote only a portion of the President’s remarks while ignoring the context in which they were made.
When asked whether the President had promised not to seek re-election if the electricity supply did not improve dramatically, Onanuga said, “That is not exactly what he said. He said he will give Nigerians power. I’m paraphrasing now. He said he will also say he will end the area of estimated billing. A problem that he has largely solved because it should not be his business, but his government is producing meters, asking the DISCOS to give people meters free of charge.
“And he said, if by any chance he has reasons not to give Nigerians adequate power, then they should understand the problem that he inherited.”
When he was told that the President said he should not be reelected if the electricity supply did not improve, Onanuga said, “He didn’t say that way. Let me see if I can open my phone and tell exactly what he said.”
Onanuga argued that Tinubu had demonstrated commitment to power sector reforms since assuming office, citing the signing of the Electricity Act as one of the administration’s major achievements.
“The first thing he did when he came to office was sign the Electricity Act, which enables states to generate power, transmit power and distribute power,” he said.
He noted that the legislation had opened up the electricity sector and encouraged competition, with several states already taking advantage of the opportunities created by the law.
“That is a good thing. Some of the states are taking advantage of that, and more are going to do so. That will make the electricity sector open and competitive,” he added.
The presidential spokesman also pointed to efforts by the administration to address the metering gap across the country, saying the government had intervened to ensure more Nigerians receive meters free of charge.
“He also learnt the error of estimated billing, a problem that his government is largely solving because the government is producing meters and asking distribution companies to give people free of charge,” Onanuga said.
While acknowledging that electricity supply has yet to reach the level envisioned by the President, Onanuga attributed the challenge to long-standing structural problems in the sector.
“We are not at the level that the President meant it. I can tell you that,” he said.
He explained that although Nigeria has an installed generation capacity of about 13,500 megawatts, constraints such as gas shortages, legacy debts and weak transmission infrastructure have limited performance.
“What people don’t know is that we already have an installed capacity of 13,500 megawatts. What are the problems? No gas. The players in the sector owe the gas companies legacy debts of over four trillion naira,” he said.
According to Onanuga, the Tinubu administration is working to resolve these issues while pursuing reforms aimed at improving generation and transmission capacity.
“The transmission grid is outdated, but that is part of the reforms that need to be put in place,” he said.
He added that the government was exploring additional initiatives to optimise existing power assets and improve electricity delivery across the country.
Onanuga maintained that despite the challenges, the administration remains committed to delivering on its promise of improving electricity supply and strengthening the nation’s power sector.
(Ripples)