Group Issues Seven-Day Ultimatum Over TCN MD Reappointment
The Arise O Compatriot Initiative has issued a seven-day ultimatum, demanding the immediate reversal of the reappointment of Engr. Sule Abdulaziz as the Managing Director of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN). The group expressed deep concern over the renewal of key management positions within TCN, highlighting persistent grid instability and unsatisfactory performance as critical issues.
Concerns Over Management and Grid Failures
In a strongly worded statement released on Wednesday, the National Coordinator of the Arise O Compatriot Initiative, Adeniran Taiwo, lamented that despite years of reforms and substantial financial investments, Nigeria's electricity sector remains in a deplorable state. He emphasized that anticipated improvements in power generation, transmission, and distribution have failed to materialize, leaving consumers to grapple with unreliable supply, frequent outages, and escalating costs.
Taiwo stated: "After decades of reforms, billions of dollars in investment, and countless promises, the average citizen still measures electricity supply in hours per day, not days per month. Factories run on diesel, small businesses depend on generators, while students read by candlelight."
The statement noted that grid collapses have become so frequent they no longer attract significant public attention, attributing this situation to systemic failures within TCN, which serves as the critical link between power generation and distribution.
Allegations of Opaque Governance
According to the group, the reappointment of the affected officials was conducted without due process, including the absence of a public performance audit, stakeholder engagement, or legislative scrutiny. Taiwo added: "Nigerians have again witnessed the quiet reappointment of key members of TCN's management team whose tenure coincided with some of the worst grid instability in recent years. This is not merely a personnel issue; it is a governance issue."
He warned that such actions reinforce a culture where "failure is recycled without consequence," suggesting that political considerations appear to outweigh technical competence in public sector appointments.
Economic and Safety Implications
Highlighting broader implications, Taiwo pointed out that Nigeria continues to bear significant economic losses due to unreliable electricity supply. He cited estimates indicating that poor power supply increases production costs for manufacturers by as much as 30 to 40 percent, ultimately driving up consumer prices.
The statement also raised concerns over stalled, donor-funded projects under TCN, noting that "loans are being serviced for assets that deliver no value," while unplanned outages continue to endanger public safety and disrupt critical services such as healthcare and security infrastructure.
Call for Urgent Reforms and Public Action
Taiwo stressed: "The power sector will not fix itself. Technical problems require technical leadership selected through transparent, merit-based processes with clear performance indicators and public reporting."
Calling for urgent reforms, he urged Nigerians to demand accountability and resist what he described as a pattern of opaque governance in the sector. He said: "The darkness in our homes is a reflection of the darkness in our accountability. If we remain silent, we consent. If we act, we reclaim the power sector and the future of our nation."
The statement concluded by calling on citizens to move beyond lamentation and actively push for reforms capable of restoring efficiency and transparency in Nigeria's power transmission system.
