Electricity tariff hikes can only be justified by improved power supply, Femi Falana says amid concerns over poor service delivery

Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has opposed plans by electricity distribution companies to increase tariffs without corresponding improvements in power supply, arguing that such increases would violate provisions of the Electricity Act.

Also read: Lagos Plans Bold Move to Scrap Electricity Band System

Falana made the remarks on Friday during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme, where he criticised the management of Nigeria’s power sector by successive administrations and questioned the value Nigerians receive from ongoing investments in the industry.

The senior lawyer said both the Peoples Democratic Party and the All Progressives Congress governments had failed to address fundamental challenges in the sector despite the privatisation of electricity assets.

According to him, government intervention funds running into trillions of naira have continued to flow into the industry, yet consumers still face unreliable electricity supply.

“Somebody sold 18 electricity companies, according to a former minister under the Jonathan administration, and Dr. Usman Shamsudeen, that we sold the electricity companies to our friends,” Falana stated.

“Now, the government has been giving again a lot of trillions of naira to the electricity companies. At the end of the day, you hear of Band A, Band B, and the rest of them.”

Falana argued that many Nigerians are being forced to pay more for electricity services that are either inadequate or unavailable.

He maintained that any proposal for Electricity Tariff Hikes must be supported by verifiable improvements in service delivery as stipulated under existing legislation.

“Again, this time around, you will have to justify. Because under the law, under the Electricity Act, you can only increase your tariff if there is improvement in services. So if the situation is getting worse, there can be no justification for an increase in tariffs,” he said.

The remarks come amid continuing complaints from households and businesses over erratic power supply, prolonged outages and rising energy costs.

Nigeria’s electricity sector has struggled for years with challenges including insufficient generation capacity, ageing infrastructure, technical losses and liquidity constraints, despite multiple reform efforts and government support programmes.

The introduction of service bands, including Band A for customers expected to receive up to 20 hours of daily electricity, was intended to align tariffs with service levels. However, many consumers have questioned whether the promised improvements have materialised.

Also read: Lagos Plans Bold End To Electricity Band System

Falana’s intervention is likely to add momentum to ongoing debates over the future of Electricity Tariff Hikes and the need for greater accountability from power distribution companies before additional costs are passed on to consumers.