President Bola Tinubu has directed the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, and relevant agencies to expedite efforts to restore electricity to the northern states affected by the recent power outage.
The President issued the directive during a meeting on Monday at the Aso Rock Villa, following reports of damaged transmission lines that have left 17 northern states without power for several days.
The widespread blackout has disrupted social and economic activities in the region, with authorities attributing the outage to vandals who damaged the critical Shiroro-Kaduna transmission line. Security concerns have hindered repair efforts, as maintenance crews face significant challenges in accessing the damaged site safely.
In a statement released by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Tinubu expressed concern over the prolonged blackout and called for a swift resolution.
“The President directed a long-term solution to the problem,” Onanuga said in the statement, titled ‘President Tinubu Expressed Concern Over Blackout in the North, Directs Speedy Restoration of Electricity.’
President Tinubu made it clear that the government will no longer tolerate deliberate acts of sabotage or destruction of public utilities, including power infrastructure.
Following his meeting with Adelabu, Tinubu emphasized the importance of ensuring that Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) engineers continue their work to repair the Shiroro-Kaduna transmission line without interruption. He also instructed the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, to coordinate with the Army and Air Force to provide security and aerial support for the engineers working on the repairs.
Tinubu called on traditional rulers, community leaders, and other leaders of thought to collaborate with security agencies in safeguarding public infrastructure and preventing further incidents of vandalism.
The Presidency reaffirmed Tinubu’s commitment to ending the disruption and restoring electricity to the affected states as soon as possible.
