Electricity Tariff: Presidency Reacts After Call For Power Minister's Sack Over ‘Freezer’ Comment

• Olusegun Dada, the special assistant to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on social media, has criticised a section of the Nigerian media
• Olusegun said some media platforms wanted to misinform the public when they reported that the minister of power, Adebayo Adelabu, lampooned Nigerians for leaving their refrigerators on to go to work
• The presidential aide reeled out what he called "crucial points for those who want to see beyond faux outrage"

Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering investment, energy and the economy.

FCT, Abuja - Dada Olusegun, the special assistant to President Bola Tinubu on social media, has said a press briefing by Adebayo Adelabu, the minister of power, and Musiliu Oseni, the executive vice chairman (EVC) of the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), “covered many significant points”.

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Olusegun criticised some media outlets for ‘focusing squarely’ on Adelabu's 'freezer' comment, adding that the intention was to ‘misinform’ the public.

Legit.ng recalls that Adelabu, on Friday, April 5, lambasted Nigerians for their alleged poor power management. While explaining the reasons for the recent hike in electricity tariffs, he blamed Nigerians.

NERC had announced an increase in electricity tariff paid by Band A customers from N68/KWh to N225KWh.

The minister's words:

“A lot of people will come back from work and they want to have dinner or they want to play with their colleagues down the road, they switch on the AC for the room to be cooling before they come back.

“Some people will be going to work in the morning and their freezers are left on for days. When all their items are frozen. This is because they are not paying enough.

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“We have all been overseas before, we know how conscious the power consumers are to consumption of electricity, this will enable us to manage consumption”.

The remarks drew criticism from many citizens online, with opposition figures and government critics asking President Bola Tinubu to sack Adelabu.

Reacting via a social media post on Saturday, April 6, Olusegun urged Nigerians to be patient with Adelabu as “the reforms” of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) “will be visible and sustainable”.

The presidential aide highlighted 15 "significant points" from Adelabu’s press conference. Legit.ng captured them below:

1. Before the tariff changed, the government subsidised 67% of electricity costs, rising even higher for generation alone.
2. The estimated subsidy cost for 2024, before tariff adjustment, was approximately 2.9 trillion Naira.
3. After the adjustment, the estimated subsidy cost for 2024 reduced to around 1.4 trillion Naira. This is a huge drop of over 50% in subsidies alone.
4. The tariff increase came with a reduction in Band A feeders, with only 481 remaining out of over 1,000.
5. Nigeria has around 12 million electricity customers.
6. Only 15% of the total customers who are categorised as Band A customers' accounts will no longer receive subsidies.
7. Only slightly over 5 million customers are currently metered, leaving a gap of over 6 million.
8. Subsidised pricing will continue temporarily, with a plan to move towards cost-reflective pricing in three years.
9. The tariff change is aimed at testing the concept of full payment for 20-24 hours of daily supply.
10. The pricing adjustment aims to address liquidity issues and make investments in the sector more feasible.
11. There are significant infrastructure challenges in the power sector, including obsolete equipment and vandalism.
12. DisCos failing to provide 20 hours of supply to Band A consumers will face sanctions.
13. DisCos has an incentive to migrate other bands to Band A to charge higher tariffs.
14. Energy consumption management is crucial despite the poorly received 'freezer' example.
15. Ongoing efforts include regulatory decentralisation, renewable energy investments, and infrastructure improvements.

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Kperogi kicks against electricity tariff hike

Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that a US-based professor, Farooq Kperogi, said the decision of the Tinubu-led government to increase electricity tariffs in the country is a bad choice.

Kperogi posited that since Tinubu came to power nearly a year ago, he has never implemented any policy that gives even an ounce of solace to the poor.

Source: Legit.ng