Stop Enriching Private DISCOs With Public Funds, Senate Tells Federal Gov’t

The Senate has urged the Federal Government to put an end to the use of public funds in supporting private electricity distribution companies (DISCOs), describing the current model as unjust and unsustainable.

Raising the issue on the floor of the Senate on Thursday, the chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment, Senator Yunus Akintunde (APC, Oyo Central), criticised the government’s continued funding of electricity infrastructure that ultimately ends up in the hands of profit-driven private operators.

“When you buy a transformer with government funds and hand it over to a community, the DISCOs demand payment for installation,” Akintunde lamented. “But the moment it is energised, it becomes their asset. That’s how public money ends up enriching private monopolies.”

The Senator condemned the practice as a systemic flaw in Nigeria’s power sector and called for a new subsidy regime that benefits the public rather than private companies.

“Electricity subsidies are not a Nigerian anomaly—they’re a global necessity,” he said. “Even in advanced economies like the UK, energy is subsidised. We shouldn’t abandon the idea simply because of past abuses. Subsidies, when properly managed, drive growth and shield the poor.”

Akintunde also pointed to what he described as a fundamental structural imbalance in the sector. While electricity generation and distribution have been privatised, transmission remains under government control, an arrangement he said was outdated and a major hindrance to nationwide power stability.

“If you check most transmission lines and substations, they’re outdated and incapable of handling modern power needs. That’s one of the biggest bottlenecks to reliable supply across the country,” he noted.

He stressed that the real issue goes beyond transformers or installations but lies in overhauling an inefficient system that benefits private companies at the expense of citizens.

“This is not just about transformers, it’s about fixing a broken system,” Akintunde added. “We must stop using public funds to empower private interests. Instead, we must empower Nigerians with affordable and reliable electricity.”

The Senate’s call came amid growing public frustration over erratic electricity supply and rising energy tariffs, despite billions of naira spent annually on power sector interventions.