FG reacts to latest hike in electricity tariff

The federal government has reacted to the purported hike in electricity tariff by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC.

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, had earlier on Monday approved over 50 per cent hike in electricity tariff payable by customers of the 11 Distribution Companies, DisCos.

The new increment which is coming barely two months after the implementation of the controversial hike proposed last year is effective till June 2021 while a Cost Reflective Tariff (CRT) expected to raise the new cost higher will be activated from June to December 2021.

Speaking on Channels Television on Tuesday, Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, denounced the purported hike, noting that he is the chairman of the sub-committee consisting of the Federal Government side and Labour side that had been mandated to go round the country to interact and consult with stakeholders and the discos to find an acceptable and cost-reflective tariff that should be paid by Nigerians.

He said the sub-committee was still in the process of carrying out its assignment and had not finished it, saying that there has been no increase in tariff.

According to him what was agreed on was to freeze certain bands, as there is band A, B, C, D and so on, saying that in the interim, what was done was to adjust certain bands and to ensure that certain persons who were supposed to be on some bands were not wrongly put on some other bands.

He explained that what had just been done was adjustment of certain bands but that there had not been any increase in tariffs.

Keyamo said when he heard it, he immediately called for a meeting on this issue and that what NERC had released did not reflect what was agreed upon at the level of the committee.

He said he was not consulted and that members of the committee also said they were not consulted.

The minister stated that the committee was trying to fix a meeting for Thursday to find out exactly what happened and take it from there.

He assured Nigerians that the committee would soon come out with a statement before Nigerians to show the true position of things.