The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council has defended President Bola Tinubu’s 2023 campaign pledge to end estimated electricity billing, saying Nigerians should assess the commitment alongside the administration’s reforms and interventions in the power sector.
The council said Tinubu remained committed to addressing Nigeria’s longstanding electricity challenges and would present his administration’s scorecard, including outstanding tasks, as he seeks re-election in 2027.
The position was contained in a statement issued on Sunday, 1 November, 2026, by Dele Alake, spokesperson for the APC Presidential Campaign Council, in response to public commentary on the president’s electricity pledge during a meeting with members of the Organised Private Sector in Lagos ahead of the 2023 general elections.
At the meeting, Tinubu had promised to ensure electricity availability and end estimated billing, adding that Nigerians should not re-elect him if he failed to deliver unless he provided adequate reasons for falling short.
Alake argued that some recent commentaries had quoted the pledge without including the president’s concluding qualification, which he said was necessary for a fair assessment of the commitment.
He maintained that the administration’s performance should be evaluated against developments in electricity supply, metering, infrastructure and the stability of the electricity market.
According to the statement, Tinubu signed the Electricity Act, 2023, on June 9, 2023, within two weeks of assuming office. The council said the legislation opened up the electricity market by allowing state governments to participate in power generation, transmission and distribution.
It listed Lagos, Enugu, Abia, Ekiti, Oyo, Kaduna and Niger among states that had established electricity regulatory agencies to take advantage of the new framework.
The APC council also said the administration inherited more than ₦6 trillion in legacy debts accumulated between 2015 and 2025 and introduced a Presidential Metering Initiative to address the country’s estimated metering gap of more than seven million customers.
It claimed that more than 1.5 million customers had been metered under the initiative in the last three years.
On electricity market financing, the statement said the Federal Government introduced a ₦4 trillion bond programme to settle verified debts owed to 21 power generation companies and gas suppliers, adding that the first two tranches had raised more than ₦1.2 trillion.
Alake said the intervention was intended to improve liquidity and restore confidence among operators, pointing to recent investments by Geregu Power Plc in new transformers for its Geregu 1 Power Plant as an indication of renewed investment in the sector.
The council also highlighted ongoing transmission infrastructure projects under the Presidential Power Initiative, which was initiated by the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to the statement, Tinubu reviewed the existing agreement with German partners and signed an acceleration agreement in December 2023 to fast-track projects aimed at strengthening the national transmission grid.
It said the Federal Executive Council approved the first batch of five Transmission Company of Nigeria substations for upgrade in December 2024, while a second batch involving the construction of eight new substations and the upgrade of four existing facilities was approved in June 2026.
The statement further cited plans to modernise the Osogbo Grid Control Centre and develop an East-West super grid, as well as rural electrification projects through the Rural Electrification Agency, including solar connections to universities, hospitals and rural communities.
On electricity tariffs, Alake said the administration had introduced service-based tariff bands to improve the financial position of distribution companies and reduce the government’s subsidy burden, while maintaining protections for low-income households.
He acknowledged that resolving the power sector’s challenges remained a work in progress but insisted that the president had not abandoned his campaign commitment.
The council said Tinubu would present his electricity sector record and explain the outstanding challenges to Nigerians as political activities gather momentum ahead of the 2027 general elections.
