Nov 03, 2025 (Daily Trust/All Africa Global Media via COMTEX) --
Two months after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced the nomination of Engr. Ramat Abdulahi as the Chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), the Senate is yet to confirm his appointment.
This is despite the president sending the name of Ramat and two other new commissioners to the Senate for confirmation on October 7.
Though his appointment was made while the National Assembly was in recess, Ramat had staged a dramatic assumption of office a day after the president announced his name as the new chairman but his theatrics was condemned by industry experts who said the move was illegal as his appointment is subject to senate's confirmation.
A month since the senate resumed from its recess, his name and those of his commissioners are yet to be called for screening and confirmation.
The commission is currently headed by its Vice Chairman, Dr. Musiliu Oseni, whose tenure as a commissioner in the commission would end in the next five weeks.
However, experts have raised alarm that this could lead to a leadership vacuum in the commission as the 2023 Electricity Act did not make provision for an Acting Chairman in the agency.
While Daily Trust is yet to get information from the senate on why he is yet to be called, sources told our reporter that the confirmation was stalled due to some complaints received against the nominee.
Sources at the commission also said they can't confirm why he is yet to be confirmed by the senate despite the way he stormed the commission when he was nominated.
"The way he stormed the commission after his nomination one would think his confirmation will be one of the first tasks the Senate would carry out when it resumed. But it is surprising that it took this long," an official in the commission said.
The source however said the absence of a substantive chairman has not hindered the commission's activities since the provision of the Electricity Act gives it a vice chairman.
"Activities of the commission are going on smoothly and the commission is celebrating its 20th anniversary," he said.
Experts express worry over lack of substantive chairman
Speaking with Daily Trust, the founder of PowerUp Nigeria, a consumer advocacy group, Adetayo Adegbemle, said it is worrisome that the NERC Chairmanship nominee has not been confirmed since it was forwarded to the Senate Committee on Power.
He expressed concern that nothing has been heard whether the nominee will be given the nod, or not despite that several nominations had gone to the Senate with nominees confirmed.
"This uncertainty does not bode well with the health of the power sector. The federal government is not helping, we cannot have an uncertain leadership at the Ministry, and now add another uncertainty at the Regulatory level. This is not good for the power sector," he said.
On his part, the National Secretary of the Nigeria Electricity Consumer Advocacy Network (NECAN), Uket Obonga, said in the past, when the commission had a vacuum of chairman, a lot of funny things happened and there is no provision in the Electricity Act that made room for an acting chairman.
"I don't know how the current vice chairman is operating but there is no provision for acting chairman. So certainly, there are certain decisions that are kept in abeyance as a result of lack of proper constitution of the commission. If you read the Electricity Act, you discover that there are certain decisions that have to be taken and arrived at through voting by the appointed commissioners.
"What today you call a service-based tariff, it came into being in another name, viable and nonviable consequences. And it happened between 2015 and 2017, when the commission was not constituted properly and some people took advantage of that to do all manner of things."
Obonga stated that there are speculations that the nominated chairman's confirmation is affected by the exit of former Kano Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje as the chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
"But from what we are hearing from the alleged fellow who recommended the commission's chairman, who is yet to be confirmed by the Senate, has been out of touch, or has fallen out, or has been removed by the president.
"So, Ganduje, as we all know, is the one who brought that young man to the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, and now, his confirmation is taking another turn, because all the appointees sent to the Senate have been confirmed, only this one has not been confirmed."
"So basically, it lends credence to the suspicion that the fallout between the president and the former APC national chairman, Dr. Ganduje, may be responsible, allegedly, may be responsible."
On whether the lack of a substantive chairman will affect all the orders issued by the commission, he said in a proper and workable clime, where people believe in the rule of law, the constitution states very clearly on how the chairman has to be appointed by the president, who in turn is forwarded to senate for confirmation.
"Until that is done, no one has legal power or authority to make any statement or perform any function. If we are in a system where people defend the rights of the constitution and are ready to protect the rule of law, then if you challenge whatever action or activity currently taken in the commission, it should be illegal and declared null and void by any court of competent jurisdiction," he added.
What the law says
According to the 2023 Electricity Act, the Chairman shall be appointed for five years; and the Vice Chairmen and other Commissioners for four years.
Subject to section 41 (5), on the death of, or vacation of office by a Commissioner, the President shall nominate a candidate to fill that vacancy, and submit such nomination to the Senate within one month for confirmation in accordance with section 35 of this Act. The Vice-Chairman shall perform the Chairman's functions whenever the Chairman is absent or for any reason unable to perform them.
"Whenever the office of Chairman or Vice-Chairman becomes vacant, or on the death of the Chairman or Vice-Chairman, the President shall, within three weeks, select another Commissioner to fill the vacancy under section 40. 42.
"The Commission shall seat for the conduct of business as often as is necessary or expedient and, the Chairman or, in his absence, the Vice-Chairman shall preside at all meetings of the Commission.
"All decisions of the Commission shall be on the basis of majority of the members present and voting with the quorum for the meeting of the Commission shall be four and subject to section 45 of this Act, at all meetings of the Commission each Commissioner present shall have one vote on each question before the Commission."
Senate mums
When contacted on why the nomination of Engr. Ramat is yet to be confirmed, Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy told Daily Trust that the enquiries should be directed to the Senate.
But the Senate's spokesperson, Senator Yemi Adaramodu (APC, Ekiti South) neither answered his phone calls nor replied to messages sent to his phone for clarification on the matter.
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COMTEX_469990647/2029/2025-11-03T05:31:20
by Faruk Shuaibu
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