Posted on: 04:07 Fri, 05 Feb 2016



The Trade Union Congress has lambasted
Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr.
Babatunde Fashola for insisting that increase in
electricity tariff is the only way to enhance
stable power supply in Nigeria.

The union disagreed with the National Electricity
Regulatory Commission, NERC, which
announced the increase last month.

According to the TUC, the minister’s argument
that an Act of the National Assembly actually
empowered the commission to increase tariff
and that the Act cannot be tampered with even
by the federal parliament, was certainly “very
lame, too simplistic and misleading.”

“Any Act that preys on the masses that it is
supposed to protect negates public policy.

Any
Act that compels the citizens to pay for
services not delivered is not only flawed and
undemocratic but is ultra vires the power of the
Assembly to make laws for the good of the
country, and should not enjoy any applicability.

“Any Act that further impoverishes the
downtrodden and lowly is evil and should be
discountenanced. We lend our voice again to
advocate the need for the minister and NERC to
stop trying to enforce the obnoxious Act,” TUC
said in statement signed by the duo of Comrade
Bobboi Bala Kaigama, its President, and
Barrister Musa Lawal, its Secretary-General.