Contractor corruption has been blamed by Mr. Ola Olukoyede, Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), for the frequent outages of Nigeria’s national grid.
During the House of Representatives Committee on Financial Crimes’ oversight visit to the EFCC headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday, Olukoyede made this announcement.
Concerning how corruption and financial crimes have impeded the country’s progress, Olukoyede voiced his worries. Equipment failures, outages, and frequent grid breakdowns were all caused by questionable practices in the power industry, he said, including the purchase of inferior materials.
Over the past 15 to 20 years, the country’s budget performance has been persistently subpar, with execution frequently dipping below 20%, according to the chairman of the EFCC.
The frequent outages of the national grid, he noted, have been caused by inadequate equipment that electricity companies have bought.
The EFCC Boss’s statement
The chairman of the EFCC bemoaned Nigeria’s inadequate capital project implementation and execution, emphasizing that the nation cannot build infrastructure or prosper economically under such circumstances.
Studies conducted by the EFCC revealed that power industry contractors frequently chose to use inferior materials when they were given contracts to supply electrical equipment.
“We are having trouble with electricity as I speak to you right now. You’ll cry if you see some of the investigations we’re doing in the power industry,” he said.
Olukoyede further disclosed that the country’s capital project execution over the last 20 years has been woefully inadequate, with performance levels hardly above 20%.
“How do you envision infrastructure growth if we don’t do that? How do you envision your country developing?
Working with the National Assembly, we have been given the task of completing at least 50% of our capital project this year. We will all be okay as a country if we do 50%. “One of Nigeria’s biggest issues is the failure to implement this capital budget,” he said.
Working together with legislators
In order to effectively combat corruption in Nigeria, Olukoyede underlined the necessity of teamwork and collaboration with all parties involved.
In order to carry out the EFCC’s duty to combat financial crimes, he urged lawmakers and the agency to work together more closely.
“Nigerians will remember the mandate before you, which is before us, if it is handled effectively and efficiently.” This is among the main obstacles preventing Nigeria from developing.
You and the EFCC share responsibilities for efficiently combating financial crimes and corruption. In light of this, it is appropriate that we collaborate,” Olukoyede stated.
According to the chairman of the EFCC, lawmakers and the commission are both committed to combating corruption in order to promote national progress.
Some things you should be aware of
The nation was plunged into a catastrophic blackout after the national grid crashed twice in less than a week this month, according to earlier reports.
Concerns have been raised regarding the stability of the electricity grid and how this string of outages will affect homes and businesses nationwide.
Worries about the grid’s dependability and the urgent need for reforms in the electrical industry have increased as a result of this most recent collapse, which is the eleventh grid breakdown documented in 2024, with three of these occurrences taking place in October.
