The organised labour will today (Monday) commence protests across the nation over electricity tariff hike and removal of subsidy from the power sector by the Federal Government.

According to The Punch, the National Treasurer of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Olatunji Ambali and the National Deputy President of the Trade Union Congress, Tommy Etim, who confirmed the planned protests insisted on the reversal of the tariff hike to the subsidy era.

The labour action is expected to lead to the shutdown of the Abuja headquarters of the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission, the Ministry of Power and state offices of power distribution companies.

The NERC announced the hike in the electricity tariff for Band A customers at a press briefing in Abuja on April 3, revealing that those affected would pay N225 per kilowatt-hour, up from the previous rate of N68/kWh.

The hike represented a 240 percent increase.

The development marked the removal of subsidy from the tariff of customers in the Band A category, who constituted about 15 per cent of the total 12.82 million power consumers across the country.

Based on the tariff hike, the Federal Government said it would save N1.5tn.

The government stated that the decision took effect on April 3, 2024, adding that Band A customers would enjoy up to 20 hours of power supply daily.

However, the House of Representatives, organised labour, the Nigerian Bar Association, Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, electricity consumers and civil society organisations, demanded a reversal of the hike to the subsidy era tariff.

The House called on the NERC to suspend forthwith the implementation of the new electricity tariff nationwide.

But justifying the increase during an investigative hearing held by the Senate Committee on Power, Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, argued that there would be a nationwide blackout in the next three months if the increase in electricity tariff was not implemented.

He said this after the Senate Committee, chaired by Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, rejected the new tariff regime.

“The entire sector will be grounded if we don’t increase the tariff. With what we have now in the next three months, the entire country will be in darkness if we don’t increase tariffs. The increment will catapult us to the next level. We are also Nigerians.  We are also feeling the impact,’’ Adelabu declared.

However, the NLC and the TUC insisted on the reversal of the tariff hike even as they expressed dissatisfaction with the epileptic power situation in the country, saying that it is affecting economic growth.

Speaking at the International Workers Day celebration in Abuja on May 1, the NLC President, Joe Ajaero, submitted that the government cannot fix tariffs in a sector that was already deregulated.

The TUC President, Festus Osifo, also faulted the hike, saying, “It is unethical to force Nigerians to pay higher tariffs for non-existent electricity. Estimated billing is an extortion and daylight robbery against Nigerians.”

The unions handed down a one-week ultimatum and threatened to picket NERC offices should a total reversal of the tariff to the subsidy era was not done. The ultimatum by Labour expired on Sunday (yesterday).

In a move to appease the unions, the NERC last week Monday ordered a downward review of the tariff from 225/kWh to 206.8/kWh, representing approximately an 8.1 percent reduction.

The commission attributed the cut to the relative appreciation of the naira in the official foreign exchange window.

• NERC Cuts Hike

NERC also said that the revision of the 2024 Multi-Year Tariff Order for Band A customers led to a reduction in tariffs for all discos.

In a statement announcing the cut, the commission said, “Under the tariff methodology adopted by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, a revised tariff order covering the month of May 2024 has been issued by the commission to the 11 electricity distribution companies.

“The commission has considered changes in the macroeconomic parameters over the preceding month of April 2024 and especially the appreciation of exchange rates – consequently the commission has approved a downward review of end-user tariffs for Band “A” customers from NGN225/kWh to NGN206.8/kWh.

“The commission reaffirms its commitment to providing a balanced and effective regulatory regime serving the needs of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry.”

The National Treasurer of the NLC, Ambali, On Sunday said, the union had fully mobilised its members and affiliates for the protest against the tariff increase.

“We commend the Federal Government on halting the cyber security levy; however, labour is fully mobilised for the electricity tariff hike protests across the country.”

Corroborating Ambali, the National Deputy President of the TUC, Etim, noted that the organised labour was ready for the nationwide protests at the NERC offices.

“Of course, Labour is fully mobilised for the protests which will start tomorrow (Monday.)

Also, a top official of the NLC, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on behalf of the union, stated, “Picketing would start today not only at the offices of the National Electricity Regulatory Commission but also in all the distribution companies across the nation.”

He said the mobilisation of workers and affiliate unions was ongoing, adding that meetings were held on Saturday and Sunday by the NLC and TUC to fine-tune strategies for the labour action.

• Labour Mobilises

“We enjoin the civil societies, organisations, market women, and students to join organised labour because it is a collective battle, and we are all collectively being afflicted by the wicked policies of the government,” he noted.

“Collectively, we can push that back. As you can see, we have fought the issue of the cyber security levy and they have agreed to withdraw it.

“Together, if we fight this problem, one by one we will compel government’s actions that are anti-people to be pushed back. Don’t leave it to the NLC and the TUC but join us at the barricade so that together, we can compel the government to do the needful,” he appealed.

Meanwhile, civil society groups have endorsed today’s (Monday’s) showdown, saying they were committed to any action that could ameliorate the sufferings of Nigerians.

The Chancellor of the International Society for Social Justice and Human Rights, Dr Jackson Omenazu, said his organisation would join the protests called by the labour leaders.

“Look at the sufferings of Nigerians; the government should try to put up policies that will ameliorate the sufferings of the people and not increase their sufferings. The  NLC and the TUC have our backing 100 per cent,” he said.

The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre also expressed support for the picketing of the NERC and the power distribution firms.

The Executive Director of CISLAC, Mr Auwalu Rafsanjani, affirmed, “Any protest that is going to help Nigerian people to come out of the sufferings that Nigerian government policies have put the people, we will join.’’

Speaking further, he added, “In fact, CSOs don’t need to wait until Organised Labour calls for protest. We have been calling for a review of the policies of government negatively affecting the people: inequality, poverty, and corruption.

“We also support the NLC and the TUC on this move. Nigerian people have suffered enough in the hands of bad government and leaders who appear to be promoting inequality, poverty, corruption, and lack of comfort and social justice.’’

“We definitely as civil society organisations want to work with every like-minded person to ensure that these problems are addressed. Many Nigerians cannot afford good meals, accommodation, and education. This is welcome and we hope that the government will address this problem,’’ Rafsanjani noted.

The Executive Director of the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre, Okechukwu Nwanguma, said he was in support of the protests, insisting that the government should address the issues raised by organised labour.

“We are in support of the call to protest the tariff hike by the NLC and the TUC,” he said.

Credit: The Punch

Former Super Eagles player, Tijjani Babangida, has lost Fadil, his one-year-old son, in a car crash involving his family along the Kaduna-Zaria highway.

Babangida, last Thursday, was travelling with his family, Maryam, his wife, their son, and Ibrahim, his brother, and his maid when the car incident occurred.

Ibrahim was said to have died on the spot while the other occupants in the vehicle were rushed to the hospital.

But in a recent update, Harrison Jalla, chairman of the Professional Footballers Association of Nigeria (PFAN) Task Force, disclosed that Babangida’s son also died due to injury sustained in the accident.

“Yes he eventually lost the son, a one-year-old boy,” Jalla told TheCable on Sunday evening.

Babangida’s wife is also said to have lost an eye due to the severe injury to her face. She is said to be receiving treatment at the intensive care unit of the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria.

It is also reported that their maid suffered a fracture in her leg.

The Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) on Sunday paid a courtesy visit to Babangida at the hospital.

The delegation consoled the former Eagles player over the deaths of his brother and son. They also prayed for a quick recovery for Babangida and his wife, “who has undergone a successful facial surgery”.

Babangida is the president of PFAN and was a member of the Nigeria U-23 team that won the gold medal in football at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.

He had a decade with the Super Eagles, where he became famous for his speed down the wings.

Babangida was also a member of the Eagles squad at the 1998 World Cup and 2000 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

Tokunbo Wahab, the Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources in Lagos State is widely believed by many as a breath of fresh air in the nation’s politics.

The trained lawyer hit the ground running immediately after he was appointed as commissioner after his tenure as a Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Education in 2019.

This is surely due in part to his belief that anything worth doing at all is worth doing well. He believes that things should be done the right way to achieve great results.

As Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Education, he spearheaded the biggest turnaround in the educational sector in Lagos. He revamped the educational template of Lagos to meet global standards, upgraded colleges of education, and polytechnics to universities, and ensured teachers were dishing out quality education in line with THEMES agenda.

With all his giant strides, Governor Sanwo-Olu immediately redeployed him in his new role as the Commissioner of Environment and Water Resources during the beginning of his second tenure.

Shortly after he was sworn in as a commissioner, the fearless man didn’t take long before reading the riot act to workers in the ministry and also erring Lagosians who are in the habit of polluting Lagos through waste, air, noise, and encroached builders on areas reserved as green areas or those blocking the drainage channel for easy movement of rainwater.

While many are aware that discharging his duties is a Herculean task, he is doing everything within his power to ensure things are done according to the law and also in due process without minding whose ox is gored.

His no-bending style and courage have earned the outspoken, articulate, and highly cerebral accolades in many quarters. He also has become one of the most talked about commissioners in Lagos State nay Nigeria.

Wahab, a lawyer with more than 25 years of experience, is a partner at Wall and Ace Law Firm. He has extensive experience across all strata of legal practice.

He is also an alumnus of the prestigious Harvard Kennedy School of Government and the Wharton University of Pennsylvania.