President of the Northeast Elders and Youths People’s Forum (NEYPF), Salisu Magaji, has urged chairman of the North-eastern Governors Forum, Prof Babagana Zulum of Borno State to intervene on the situation of electricity supply in the North-east.
He recalled that the power outages in the region was caused by the vandalism of towers between Gombe and Bauchi as announced by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) some months ago.
Magaji, in an open letter to the governor made available to LEADERSHIP Weekend, said two months after promises were made that work would be intensified to reactivate the transmission, not much had been done.
He said the lack of electricity had exacerbated the already challenging conditions faced by the people of the region.
The letter read in part, “I write to you today to draw attention to a critical issue that has plunged our region into an era of profound hardship: the lamentable situation of electricity supply in the North-east.
“As you know, the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) announced a couple of months ago that towers between Gombe and Bauchi had been vandalized, resulting in widespread power outages.
“It was promised that work would be intensified to reactivate the transmission, yet, two months later, significant parts of our region remain without electricity.”
He added that the initial response to allocate the revitalisation work to engineers from TCN was altered when the Ministry of Power reassigned the task to contractors under unclear contractual provisions.
“I wonder why the work was contracted out, while TCN have reputable engineers under their employ. Despite assurances from TCN that electricity would be fully restored by May 27th, a recent circular revealed further setbacks: additional vandalism incidents and the collapse of three towers, including one of the newly erected towers along the Jos-Gombe 330kv transmission line during the cable stringing process. This has extended the duration of the blackout, leaving our communities in prolonged darkness.
“The situation is dire, and the lack of reliable electricity has exacerbated the already challenging conditions faced by our people. Daily life has become increasingly harsh, and the economic activities that depend on power supply have ground to a halt, deepening the populace’s suffering.
“We implore you, as our governor and the chairman of the North-eastern Governors Forum, to thoroughly investigate these anomalies surrounding the electricity debacle. It is imperative to hold accountable those responsible for the delays and mismanagement that have prolonged our suffering.
“Moreover, we urge you to ensure the expedited rectification of this critical infrastructure.
“Your leadership has been a beacon of hope for Borno State, and we trust that you will extend your exemplary governance to address this pressing issue. The entire region is counting on your intervention to restore electricity and alleviate the severe hardships we are enduring,” he added.
