Electricity: ADC-PCC Says Tinubu Has Failed His Own Test, Challenges APC Over 2023 Promise

The African Democratic Congress Presidential Campaign Council (ADC-PCC) has accused President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of failing to fulfil his 2023 campaign promise to provide Nigerians with reliable electricity, challenging the All Progressives Congress (APC) to explain the administration’s performance in the power sector.

The opposition campaign council said the President should be held accountable for his declaration during the 2023 presidential campaign that Nigerians should not re-elect him if he failed to deliver adequate electricity.

The latest criticism followed comments by Dele Alake, spokesperson of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, who defended Tinubu’s electricity record and argued that the President’s original campaign promise had been taken out of context.

In a statement issued on Sunday, November 1, and signed by its Director of Media and Publicity, Kola Ologbondiyan, the ADC-PCC insisted that Tinubu’s commitment was clear and should not be reinterpreted to avoid accountability.

The council recalled the President’s statement: “Don’t vote for me for second term if I fail to deliver electricity.”

According to the ADC-PCC, Nigerians continue to experience persistent blackouts, repeated national grid collapses, inadequate power supply and rising electricity costs more than three years after the pledge.

The ADC-PCC argued that the administration had instead presided over higher electricity bills, continued estimated billing and unreliable power supply, leaving households and businesses struggling with the cost of running their daily activities.

It also criticised the Band A, B and C electricity tariff classifications, arguing that consumers were paying higher rates without receiving reliable electricity in return.

The council claimed that some businesses, particularly hotels and other hospitality establishments, had resorted to rationing electricity by switching off power for guests during daytime hours to reduce operating expenses.

It further questioned the effectiveness of the Presidential Metering Initiative, alleging that its implementation had fallen short of expectations while electricity distribution companies continued to issue estimated bills to customers.

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Rejecting the APC’s reliance on legislative reforms and government financing arrangements to defend the administration, the opposition council said policies and financial interventions should be measured by their impact on electricity supply.

“An Act is not electricity. A bond prospectus does not power homes and factories. Nigerians cannot eat statutes. What Nigerians need is electricity that works, not another round of explanations and publicity,” the council stated.

The ADC-PCC maintained that Tinubu’s campaign commitment should be judged by whether Nigerians now enjoy stable and affordable electricity rather than announcements of government policies and projects.

It also challenged the APC to address the President’s original promise directly instead of attempting to explain away the commitment.

However, the APC Presidential Campaign Council rejected the suggestion that Tinubu had abandoned his electricity pledge, insisting that his 2023 statement must be considered in its full context.

In his response, Alake recalled that Tinubu had made the promise during an engagement with members of the Organised Private Sector in Lagos ahead of the 2023 general election.

According to him, the President had promised to provide electricity and end estimated billing, but also stated that Nigerians should not re-elect him if he failed to deliver unless he provided adequate reasons for the shortfall.

Alake argued that critics had deliberately omitted the concluding qualification when quoting the President’s remarks.

He maintained that Tinubu remained committed to improving electricity supply but acknowledged that resolving Nigeria’s longstanding power sector problems remained unfinished business.

The APC spokesman listed the Electricity Act 2023, the Presidential Metering Initiative, investments in transmission infrastructure and the settlement of outstanding debts in the electricity market among the administration’s interventions.

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He disclosed that more than 1.5 million electricity customers had been metered under the administration’s initiatives over the last three years.

Alake also cited the Federal Government’s N4 trillion bond programme designed to settle verified legacy debts owed to electricity generation and gas companies.

He said the administration had introduced reforms to improve the financial viability of electricity distribution companies while putting measures in place to protect low-income consumers.

The APC campaign council further maintained that the President would present his administration’s achievements and explain outstanding challenges to Nigerians as he seeks another term in office.

In a separate response to the APC’s defence, the ADC-PCC, through its Director of Strategic Communication, Phrank Shaibu, accused the ruling party of celebrating policy documents and financial interventions without addressing the everyday electricity challenges facing Nigerians.

Shaibu argued that paying legacy debts owed to power generation companies was not the same as investing in new infrastructure to increase electricity generation.

He also questioned the administration’s proposed plan to end electricity subsidies from 2027, asking what the policy would mean for household and business electricity bills.

The opposition campaign council cited Band A electricity tariffs of about ₦209.50 per kilowatt-hour, before VAT, as an example of the financial burden on consumers.

It called for a review of the existing electricity band system and proposed a framework that would make electricity more affordable while holding distribution companies accountable for the quality of service delivered.

The council also raised concerns about VAT on electricity and the proposed five per cent surcharge on certain fossil fuels, including petrol and diesel, under the Nigeria Tax Act.

The exchange has brought renewed attention to the performance of Nigeria’s electricity sector, which continues to face challenges involving inadequate generation capacity, transmission constraints, distribution inefficiencies, poor infrastructure and financial difficulties.

Although the Electricity Act 2023 introduced a framework allowing state governments to participate in electricity generation, transmission and distribution, consumers continue to demand improvements in the reliability and affordability of power supply.

The disagreement between the two campaign councils therefore centres on whether the reforms and financial interventions introduced by the Tinubu administration amount to sufficient progress towards fulfilling the President’s 202

Electricity: ADC-PCC Says Tinubu Has Failed His Own Test, Challenges APC Over 2023 Promise

2027 Election: Seun Okinbaloye Explains ‘Rigging’ Remark, Says Warning Was Not Against Any Party

Popular Channels Television journalist and broadcaster, Seun Okinbaloye, has defended his controversial warning that Nigeria’s 2027 general election was already being rigged, insisting that his remarks were not targeted at any political party, candidate or individual.

Okinbaloye made the clarification on Sunday during Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, following widespread reactions to his closing remarks on Friday’s edition of Politics Today.

The broadcaster explained that his warning was specifically about alleged irregularities in the voters’ register and the possibility of manipulating the electoral process before election day.

He said he neither mentioned any political party nor accused any presidential candidate or identified any individual as sponsoring the alleged manipulation.

“In my warning, I didn’t name any political party, accuse any candidate, and identify any sponsor. I only said 2027 election is already being rigged through fake voter register,” he said.

The clarification followed public debate over his earlier declaration that the 2027 election was already being rigged, with some Nigerians interpreting the statement as an accusation against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), while others believed it was directed at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

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Why Okinbaloye Raised the Alarm

During Friday’s Politics Today programme, Okinbaloye warned that electoral manipulation did not necessarily begin on election day, arguing that the process could be compromised much earlier through the manipulation of the voters’ register.

He urged INEC to urgently investigate suspected irregularities, including fake voter registrations, underage entries, duplicate records and other questionable information in the electoral database.

The journalist maintained that allowing an inaccurate voters’ register to remain unchecked could undermine the credibility of the 2027 general elections, regardless of the safeguards introduced on election day.

INEC’s Admission Fuels Electoral Concerns

The controversy comes against the backdrop of revelations by INEC‘s Director of Information and Communication Technology, Dr Lawrence Bayode, that some registration officials allegedly used their official login credentials to introduce questionable records into the commission’s preliminary voters’ register.

Bayode reportedly disclosed during an interview on Arise Television that the commission discovered suspicious entries, including photographs suspected to have been generated using artificial intelligence (AI).

He explained that the irregularities were detected through INEC’s Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS), adding that some questionable records were also linked to poor registration procedures.

INEC had acknowledged that the preliminary voters’ register was undergoing verification and that the public display, claims and objections exercise was intended to enable Nigerians to identify and report inaccuracies.

The commission is expected to complete its verification and data-cleaning exercise before certifying the final Register of Voters.

Okinbaloye Calls for Urgent Action

Okinbaloye insisted that Nigerians should be more concerned about addressing the alleged irregularities than engaging in arguments over his choice of words.

He stressed that electoral credibility must be protected long before voting begins, warning that weaknesses in the registration process could create opportunities for electoral malpractice.

He also called for a comprehensive investigation into the suspicious entries, an independent audit of the voters’ register and accountability for anyone found to have deliberately manipulated the registration process.

According to him, the responsibility of protecting the integrity of the 2027 elections rests not only on INEC but also on political parties, security agencies and Nigerians generally.

He maintained that his warning was not intended to favour or attack any political interest but to draw attention to potential threats to the country’s electoral process.

The development has renewed conversations about the credibility of INEC’s voters’ register and the need for transparency ahead of the 2027 general elections.

2027 Election: Seun Okinbaloye Explains ‘Rigging’ Remark, Says Warning Was Not Against Any Party