The blame game is one of the worst games ever. There is never a winner and the person at the end of the pointing finger is seldom the one bearing the weight of the troubles. This is the case for Nigerians as the misfortune of the power sector continues to bite deep and as fingers point to the Federal Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu.
There was a time when “Up NEPA!” was a shameful mantra demonstrating the inadequacies of the management of the power sector. Compared to the present, those were glory days. With Nigerians almost boiling from extreme seasonal heat, this is not the time for Adelabu’s sector to fail the expectations of the masses, which is exactly what is going on.
The first time the electricity grid collapsed in 2024, Nigerians suffered. It was a different flavour compared to the past because it was so sudden. Set against the rumours that there might soon be an increase in the electricity tariff, curses started to spring up from all over and gathered at the feet of the man considered responsible for the problem, Adelabu.
To be fair, Adelabu is not exactly helping. With every explanation he gives, he unwittingly gives the vibe that he does not really care. Recently, for example, he reportedly informed Nigerians that the government will not be able to continue subsidising electricity costs, implying a potential and significant rise in ‘NEPA bill.’
Then he allegedly explained that the power grid continues to collapse because it needs to be stabilised with additional power infrastructure. In other words, more money is needed to fix the light problem. Until then, Nigerians will have to bear with the literal and metaphorical heat.
Coming at this time, how doesn’t this announcement from Adelabu, true it may be, scream “We need more money even though we have been spending a lot of money without success”?
So, Adelabu is sitting on a metaphorical hot plate. But, thanks to low and mostly absent power output, the complaints are only piling and not motivating any fruitful response from his ministry.
