One of the most frequently quoted campaign statements of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is his pledge to improve electricity supply in Nigeria and the suggestion that Nigerians should hold him accountable if he failed to make meaningful progress. Critics have repeatedly cited this promise as evidence of failure whenever power supply challenges persist.
However, an objective assessment requires more than repeating campaign soundbites. It requires examining the state of the sector he inherited, the reforms introduced under his administration, and the direction in which the industry is moving.
Nigeria’s electricity crisis did not begin in 2023. It is the product of decades of underinvestment, policy inconsistency, inadequate transmission infrastructure, liquidity challenges, vandalism, and regulatory bottlenecks. Long before Tinubu assumed office, the power sector had become one of the most difficult structural challenges facing the nation.
The true measure of leadership is therefore not whether a decades-old problem disappears overnight, but whether the right reforms are being implemented to solve it.
Perhaps the most significant achievement of the Tinubu administration in the power sector is the signing of the Electricity Act 2023. The landmark legislation is widely regarded as the most comprehensive power sector reform since the Electric Power Sector Reform Act of 2005. It liberalized the sector, decentralized electricity regulation, and empowered states, companies, and private investors to generate, transmit, distribute, and regulate electricity within their jurisdictions. This effectively ended decades of excessive centralization that many experts had identified as a major obstacle to growth in the sector.
The significance of this reform cannot be overstated. For the first time, states now have greater authority to develop independent electricity markets and attract investments tailored to their local needs. This is already encouraging subnational participation and creating opportunities for increased power generation and distribution outside the traditional federal framework.
Beyond legislation, the administration has pursued policies aimed at making the power sector more attractive to investors. The Electricity Act created a more competitive and investment-friendly environment by opening multiple segments of the value chain to private participation. Industry analysts have described the law as a major step toward a modern electricity market capable of attracting long-term capital and innovation.
The government has also sought to address structural financial problems that have plagued the sector for years. One of the biggest obstacles to reliable electricity supply has been the enormous debt burden owed to power generation companies. Efforts by the administration to refinance and restructure these obligations are intended to improve liquidity, restore investor confidence, and enable further investments in generation and infrastructure.
Transmission infrastructure, long recognized as a weak link in Nigeria’s electricity value chain, has also received renewed attention. The administration has continued efforts to strengthen transmission capacity and revive strategic partnerships aimed at upgrading transmission and distribution networks. These initiatives are designed to ensure that electricity generated can actually be transmitted and delivered to consumers.
Critics often focus exclusively on whether Nigeria currently enjoys uninterrupted electricity. While that remains the ultimate goal, serious policy analysis must recognize that sustainable electricity reform is a process rather than an event. No administration could realistically reverse decades of accumulated deficits within a few years.
What can be fairly assessed is whether the administration is implementing reforms that previous governments either avoided or failed to complete. By that standard, the decentralization of the power sector, liberalization of electricity markets, encouragement of private investment, restructuring of sector finances, and efforts to strengthen transmission infrastructure represent substantial policy actions rather than mere rhetoric.
Reasonable people may debate the pace of progress. They may argue that more should be done or that results should come faster. Such debates are healthy in a democracy. What is difficult to dispute, however, is that significant structural reforms have been undertaken since 2023.
Those quoting President Tinubu’s campaign promise on electricity should therefore be honest enough to acknowledge the enormity of the challenge he inherited. Leadership should not be judged solely by the existence of a problem, but also by the seriousness of the efforts made to solve it.
As Nigerians eventually evaluate the administration and consider the question of a second term, the verdict should be based on facts, reforms, measurable progress, and long-term impact- not isolated campaign statements stripped of context. The electricity challenge remains a work in progress, but the foundations being laid today may well determine whether Nigeria finally achieves the stable and reliable power supply its citizens have sought for decades.
■ Steve Otaloro is a political analyst, public affairs commentator, and communications strategist. He is passionate about governance, policy reforms, and sustainable development, and contributes perspectives on national issues affecting Nigeria’s political and economic landscape.
