By Bola Olamide
A group, The Democratic Front (TDF) has called for an independent public investigation into the alleged expenditure of $16 billion on Nigeria’s power sector between 1999 and 2007, demanding that former President Olusegun Obasanjo and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar account for their roles in the spending.
The group said a fresh investigation had become necessary to establish how the huge funds were spent without significant improvement in electricity generation, transmission and distribution.
In a statement jointly signed by its Chairman, Mallam Danjuma Muhammad, and Secretary, Chief Wale Adedayo, the TDF urged the Federal Government to revisit the findings of the National Assembly’s 2008 investigation into the power sector.
It recalled that the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee set up to investigate the expenditure reported that $13.28 billion was spent on the sector between 1999 and 2007, excluding the supplementary budget for 2007, without sufficient evidence of projects to justify the expenditure.
The group, however, said the then Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, subsequently put the total expenditure at $16 billion after including the 2007 supplementary budget.
According to the TDF, more than $8 billion of the funds was sourced from the Excess Crude Account, while the legislative investigation reportedly uncovered alleged contract abuses, inflated project costs and the abandonment of electricity equipment worth about $5 billion at Nigerian ports.
It further alleged that several contracts were awarded for projects that did not exist, while some contractors received full payment without delivering the required equipment.
The group expressed concern that Nigerians remained without a clear account of how the funds were utilised and why the massive expenditure failed to translate into reliable electricity supply.
It also accused Obasanjo and Atiku of failing to take responsibility for the power sector’s shortcomings during their administration, alleging that they had continued to criticise the current administration despite inheriting what it described as the consequences of past failures.
The TDF particularly faulted Atiku for allegedly displaying selective amnesia over the issue, recalling his reported admission that the administration he served failed to utilise the huge expenditure to provide uninterrupted electricity for Nigerians.
It maintained that the former Vice President should not blame the Tinubu administration for challenges that, according to the group, were rooted in the failures of previous governments.
The organisation stressed that its demand for an independent investigation was not motivated by political vendetta or an attempt to tarnish the reputations of the former leaders.
Rather, it said the objective was to promote transparency, strengthen public accountability and ensure that those responsible for the alleged financial abuses were identified and held accountable.
The group added that a comprehensive investigation would enable Nigerians to understand the roles played by individuals involved in the expenditure and establish why the country had continued to struggle with unstable electricity supply despite the huge investments made in the sector.
