News
Fix It Now, Northern Governors Urge FG on Massive Blackout in Region
...Blame vandalism of electricity transmission infrastructure
Northern governors, under the aegis of the Northern Governors Forum, NGF, rose from their meeting in Kaduna, on Monday, with a strident call on the Federal Government, and relevant agencies, to urgently fix the massive blackout enveloping most parts of the north due to vandalization of electricity transmission infrastructure.
The meeting was also attended by traditional rulers and other stakeholders in the region.
The governors reeled out a communique at the end of the meeting.
“Forum resolves to call on the Federal Government and relevant Agencies to urgently address the current electricity power blackout affecting most of the Northern States due to vandalization of electricity transmission infrastructure,” the governors said in the communique.
“This matter not only underscores the vulnerability of critical infrastructure but also the need to build additional transmission lines and diversify our energy supply so as to better connect our region and improve our energy resilience.”
The region has been thrown into darkness for days now as a result of the vandalism of a transmission lines in the region.
The problem has drastically slowed down economic activities just as many businesses have been paralysed and are counting their losses.
Worried by this development, President Bola Tinubu has mandated the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, and other concerned parties, to speed up the restoration process.
The President also ordered the National Security Adviser, NSA, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, “to work with the Army and Air Force to deploy adequate security personnel, including aerial cover, to protect the engineers who are fixing the damaged transmission lines.”
Lamenting the vandalisation of the transmission lines, the President fired a stern warning that Nigeria will no longer tolerate “deliberate sabotage and destruction of public utilities”.
In the meantime, the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, has said that it was working to restore power to the affected region.
“TCN would like to state categorically that it was working diligently to restore bulk power supply as quickly as possible despite prevailing security challenges,” the agency’s General Manager of Public Affairs Ndidi Mbah said in a statement.
