The Taraba state government on Thursday accused the federal government of neglecting the northeastern region, her economy, and the people’s wellbeing.
Engr. Naomi Agbu, the state commissioner for energy and economic development, made the accusation while briefing journalists in Jalingo over the vandalization of four transmission 330 kV line towers along Jos-Gombe on April 22, 2024, that has thrown Taraba state into total darkness.
According to the commissioner, the sabotage act has not only jeopardised the reliability of electrical infrastructure in the North-East region but has also resulted in widespread inconvenience and hardship for the community, plunging millions into blackout.
Engr. Agbu expressed that the lengthy time it took to respond to the matter was a show of complete neglect by the federal government in Taraba State and the northeastern region.
“This economic vandalism of transmission line towers represents a blatant disregard for the well-being and prosperity of our region. These critical components of our electrical grid serve as lifelines, delivering power to homes, businesses, hospitals, and essential services. The deliberate destruction of these towers undermines the stability of our electrical system, putting lives and livelihoods at risk.
“This issue is a federal matter, and I want to assure you that we are taking this matter very seriously, and we have been working tirelessly with the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) to address the situation.
“We have also contacted the Minister of Power, and we are yet to get positive feedback for the weeks of blackouts in a state capital such as Jalingo. the lengthy time to respond to the matter is a show of complete neglect by the federal government to Taraba state and the northeastern region
“If there is one thing we have all learned in the past few days from the response time to faults and the priority of the heads in the sector, is that the network to the North-East region is vulnerable. The outcry for a robust plan such as the North-East ring circuit as contained in the proposal of TCN expansion plan to connect the North-East to Southern Nigeria should be implemented by the FGN immediately.
“As some of you may know by now, other states have gotten partial reconnection to electricity supply due to the back-feeding of the old TCN 132kV line stretching from Jos via Bauchi, Gombe, and Savanah to Yola and Jalingo.
“The unfortunate reality is that this 132 kV line that is to backfeed Jalingo was reported to be old with the peculiarity of being lengthy and lightly loaded as of today, and hence poses a high voltage due to the farranti effect at the farthest end of the line, in which Taraba State is one of such points. Furthermore, the line is pegged at around 40–48 MW, which is far below its installed capacity, and YEDC is getting around 19 MW for Adamawa, Yobe, Borno, and Taraba.
“Due to technical constraints in the 132 kV network and equipment limitations from the TCN end, if power is to be supplied to Jalingo as it is right now, the probability of damage to infrastructure and accidents is too high. The risk of supplying electricity to Jalingo at this point far outweighs the benefit to our people.
“As you know, the role of the government is to protect the lives and properties of its people. Our priority is the restoration of electricity supply to affected areas quickly and in a safe manner. The TCN contractor has already been mobilised to site and has commenced reconnection work with his teams.
“In addition to our immediate efforts to monitor the restoration of electricity supply, YEDC has informed us of the measures that they are implementing to enhance the security and resilience of electrical infrastructure.
“This includes increasing surveillance and patrols of transmission line corridors, implementing stricter access controls to critical infrastructure sites, and enhancing community engagement to raise awareness about the importance of protecting these electrical assets.
“As a Ministry of Energy and Economic Development to Taraba state residents, I urge all of you to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activities or individuals observed near transmission line towers or electrical facilities attempting to vandalise any infrastructure. We also call on all our federal representatives in the region to be proactive in probing the federal government’s lengthy disregard for power restoration in the north-east region of Nigeria.”
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