Michael Dada
The apology by the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, over recent power supply challenges is like a landlord apologizing for darkness in a building where tenants already have the right to own generators, but have chosen not to use them.
Following the Electricity Act 2023, states were enabled to generate, transmit, distribute and sell electricity.
According to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), at least 12 states now have oversight of their electricity market, breaking the federal monopoly.
States like Enugu, Ekiti, Ondo, Imo, Edo, Oyo, Niger, Abia, Lagos, Gombe, Plateau, Kogi and Cross River.
These states have taken the initiative to establish their own electricity regulatory commissions or are at advanced stages of taking regulatory oversight.
So, what is preventing other states from taking the initiative and leveraging the legal backing to provide a steady power supply in their states?
The minister’s apology is reinforcing an outdated narrative that electricity remains solely a federal responsibility.
States now have the constitutional and legal backing to generate, transmit, and distribute electricity independent of the national grid.
The moment the Electricity Act 2023 became effective, electricity stopped being solely a federal problem, and it became a failure by state governments to take initiative.
