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Electricity workers threaten showdown, demand new tariff withdrawal
Electricity workers threaten showdown, demand new tariff withdrawal
The National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) has asked the federal government to withdrawal the new increase of tariff, saying it will push the price of goods upwards and affect the poor.
Recall that the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) had, on April 3, increased electricity tariff for customers enjoying 20 hours of power supply daily, who are said to be under the “Band A” classification.
With the tariff increase, these customers are paying N225 kilowatt per hour from the current N66.
In a letter to the Minister of Power, NUEE described the increase as absurd for a country already facing steep increases in prices of goods and services.
The letter, signed by the union’s acting General Secretary, Dominic Igwebike, said the increase would inadvertently push citizens to purchase foreign products as local products are beyond their reach.
The union said this would force companies that could withstand the low patronage would close down.
While calling for the withdrawal of the new tariff as it is not beneficial to Nigerians, NUEE said the safety of its members was at stake and at the risk of being attacked by people in the community when they visit for disconnections.
It alleged that the minister did not seek the input of stakeholders before the decision was made.
The statement read: “The recent hike in electricity tariff from N68 /kwh to N225 /kwh is absurd in a country where the majority of the masses are grappling with basic survival and an electricity access rate of about 55%.
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“The justification given by NERC is that the hike is attributed to only Band A consumers who make up only 15% of electricity consumers and utilize 40% of the nation’s electricity consumption.
“It begs to understand the sensibility of the person(s) that uttered such a statement purporting that it would not affect the general public.
“They need to answer these questions: Who are the Band A consumers? What do they do? Who are the customers of the Band A consumers? Who bears the brunt of the electricity hike? The general public is the one that will be most affected by this.
“They are the customers and end [1] users of the Band A products and services. The additional costs will be transferred to the common man, so they are indirectly being exploited, notwithstanding their dwindling purchasing power and increasing impoverishment.”
“The Honourable Minister of Power and NERC didn’t consult with the stakeholders in the sector before the increase. What of Service Reflective Tariffs as it relates to consumers? We, as a stakeholder, do not know the energy policy of this present administration.
“As a critical stakeholder in the power sector who is concerned with Nigerians getting constant and affordable power supply, we state categorically that the hike in the electricity tariff is not beneficial to Nigerians and should be withdrawn.”
Meanwhile, the electricity generation in the country has nosedived to 2,775 megawatts, MW, yesterday, a 32.3 per cent decline from 4,099.87MW recorded last week.
This was contained in the data released by the Nigeria Electricity System Operator, NESO, a semi-autonomous unit of the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN.
Information supplied by the Independent System Operator, ISO, showed that as of 6 pm yesterday, load allocation to the eleven DisCos which stood at 2,775.00 Megawatts gave Abuja Disco the highest allocation at 428MW, followed by Ikeja Electric at 422MW, Eko Disco at 359MW, Ibadan Disco at 335MW, Benin Disco at 227MW and Enugu Disco at 200MW.
The distribution companies with the lowest allocation were Yola Disco at 79MW, Jos Disco at 158MW, Kaduna Disco at 181MW, Kano Disco at 188MW and Port Harcourt Disco at 198MW.
Electricity workers threaten showdown, demand new tariff withdrawal
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Saudi Crown Prince assures Tinubu of govt support
Saudi Crown Prince assures Tinubu of govt support
The Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, has assured Nigeria of support in its economic reform programmes.
The assurance came when the Crown Prince and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu met on Monday in Riyadh on the sidelines of the joint Arab-Islamic Summit.
Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President on Information & Strategy, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday.
He said the two leaders explored potential areas for cooperation, particularly oil and gas, agriculture, infrastructure and the constitution of the Saudi-Nigeria Business Council.
Nigeria wants an agreement with the Saudi government over a proposed $5 billion bilateral trade facility between the two countries.
The Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company, SALIC, invested $1.24 billion in 2022 to acquire a 35.43% stake in Olam Agri, one of Nigeria’s leading agricultural firms.
Talks are being held so that SALIC can have more stake in the company.
The Saudis hoped the investment would make Olam one of the biggest agro-allied businesses in the world.
The Crown Prince commended President Tinubu’s economic reforms, noting similarities to his steps to strengthen Saudi Arabia’s stability and development when he became Prime Minister.
He also assured Nigeria of his support and promised to motivate his team to realise the various areas of partnerships discussed at the meeting.
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At the meeting with the Crown Prince were the Saudi Minister of National Guard, Prince Abdullah bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz, the Minister of Defense, Prince Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, and several senior officials.
Meanwhile, the Joint Arab-Islamic Summit has renewed the mandate of Nigeria and other member states on the Ministerial Committee assigned to engage with global leaders in seeking an end to the ongoing war in Gaza and Lebanon.
This decision was part of the resolution issued after the extraordinary Joint Arab-Islamic Summit, which took place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on November 11, 2024.
President Bola Tinubu and other leaders from the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, OIC, and the League of Arab States were in attendance.
The Joint Arab-Islamic Ministerial Committee, led by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, was formed by a resolution at the First Joint Arab-Islamic Summit in Riyadh on November 11, 2023.
The group includes the foreign ministers of Nigeria, Egypt, Qatar, Turkey, Indonesia, Palestine, and Jordan.
In its final resolution, the summit urged the Ministerial Committee to “intensify its efforts and expand them to include working on ending the aggression on Lebanon.”
The committee will submit periodic reports, which the secretariats of the OIC and the League of Arab States will circulate to member states.
The Committee has also been tasked with further engaging actors across the Global South in the efforts to strengthen international support towards ending the war and Israeli occupation.
The resolution stressed the importance of protecting sea lanes by rules of international law and welcomed the signing of the tripartite mechanism by the League of Arab States, OIC, and the African Union to support the Palestinian cause.
The summit praised the African Union’s steadfast support of Palestine.
The leaders condemned recent Israeli military actions in northern Gaza, describing them as “crimes of genocide,” including allegations of torture, executions, disappearances, and “ethnic cleansing.”
They also criticised ongoing efforts to solidify Israel’s presence in occupied East Jerusalem, reaffirming it as the “eternal capital” of Palestine and calling for the unification of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem under a sovereign Palestinian state.
The resolution reiterated “the full sovereignty of the State of Palestine over occupied East [Jerusalem], the eternal capital of Palestine”. It rejected any Israeli actions aimed at altering the city’s identity or consolidating its occupation.
The summit also expressed unwavering support for Lebanon’s security, stability, sovereignty, and the safety of its citizens.
Saudi Crown Prince assures Tinubu of govt support
News
Two Nigerian companies developed contactless passport renewal – FG
Two Nigerian companies developed contactless passport renewal – FG
The Federal Government has revealed that the contactless passport renewal solution, which went live in Canada on November 1, 2024, was developed by two Nigerian software companies.
The disclosure was made by Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, the Minister of Interior, during the Politics Today programme on Channels Television on Tuesday.
Tunji-Ojo explained that the Federal Government deliberately chose to trust indigenous technology for the project.
“The solution is completely indigenous. We did not go to look for foreign technology. We got Nigerian technology – the two companies/vendors that came together to develop the solution are Nigerian software companies,” he said.
The minister expressed confidence in the solution, citing his over two decades of experience as an IT cybersecurity expert and his extensive history as a project manager on numerous occasions.
He did not, however, mention the names of the companies, and at this time, they are not yet publicly known.
The Interior Minister emphasized that the contactless passport renewal solution is designed to alleviate the challenges faced by Nigerians in the diaspora, such as long travel distances, accommodation costs, and taking time off work to renew passports.
He shared specific examples of Nigerians in Canada and London who had to cancel lectures or miss work to complete their passport renewal process.
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While acknowledging that the new solution has encountered some initial hitches, Tunji-Ojo reassured Nigerians that these issues would be addressed.
Tunji-Ojo also clarified that delays in passport issuance, such as those reported by some Nigerians in Canada who experienced waiting times of up to 42 days after using the contactless passport renewal process, are not linked to the system itself.
- Instead, he attributed the delays to the limited processing capacity of Nigerian embassies. For instance, he said that the UK embassy, which has received over 48,000 passport renewal applications (note: the contactless renewal system is not yet available in the UK and is currently exclusive to Canada), can only process 300 applications per day, leading to significant backlogs.
- The Interior Minister explained that the contactless system leverages biometric databases, facial recognition, and live authentication checks, enabling applicants to renew their passports via a mobile app without visiting the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) office.
- However, the system applies only to Nigerians aged 18 and above with existing biometric records, as first-time applicants must still visit the NIS office for interviews and biometric capture.
- The Federal Government plans to expand the contactless passport renewal solution to other countries in the coming weeks.
Additionally, a centralized personalization center is being established in Abuja, equipped with advanced machines capable of printing up to 32,000 passports daily, to improve the efficiency of passport issuance.
Two Nigerian companies developed contactless passport renewal – FG
News
New Edo Gov Okpebholo takes oath of office, Shettima, others present
New Edo Gov Okpebholo takes oath of office, Shettima, others present
Vice President Kashim Shettima on Tuesday led the Federal Government delegation to the inauguration of Monday Okpebholo as a brand new governor of Edo State.
Other dignitaries at the event are Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, chair of the governors forum; and Philip Shaibu, the reinstated deputy governor of Edo.
Many sitting state governors across the country elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) that also graced the ceremony are Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos, Dapo Abiodun of Ogun, Hope Uzodinma of Imo, and Ahmad Aliyu of Sokoto, among others.
The National Chairman of the APC, Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, and his predecessor, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, were also at the ceremony, held inside the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin.
Okpebholo took his oath of office at about 1pm on Tuesday.
Dennis Idahosa was also sworn in as Edo deputy governor.
The new governor rode in an open-top van round the stadium while acknowledging cheers from supporters.
As candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Okpebholo won the September 21 off-cycle governorship election in the state.
He polled 291,667 votes to defeat Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who came second with 247,274 votes.
Olumide Akpata, candidate of the Labour Party (LP), came third with 22,763 votes.
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