Rufai Oseni says law letting states run their own electricity will never work
Television presenter Rufai Oseni has dismissed the law that allows Nigeria's states to generate and distribute their own electricity, saying it cannot work in practice.
What he said
Speaking on a breakfast television programme on Monday, 2 November 2026, Oseni reportedly said the idea of decentralising power sounds good in theory, but most states lack the money, technical skill and infrastructure to carry it out. He said the power sector needs huge investment, steady gas supply, power plants, transmission lines and working distribution networks, and asked how many states could provide these.
His argument
Oseni noted that the federal government, after running the sector for more than four decades, still struggles to supply a steady 4,000 to 5,000 megawatts to a population of over 200 million, and that the national grid often collapses. He added that many states struggle to pay civil servants and depend on monthly federal allocations, so they cannot be expected to fund power plants costing billions of dollars. He questioned how the country could split supply into 36 centres when it could not provide 24-hour power from one, and urged the government to focus on fixing the grid and gas supply.
Background
The Electricity Act of 2023 allows states to regulate and develop their own electricity markets, and several states, including Lagos, Enugu and Ondo, have set up their own regulators. Supporters of the law say it will attract investment and bring power closer to consumers. Electricity has also become a campaign issue, with opposition candidate Atiku Abubakar accusing President Tinubu of failing to keep his power promises, while the government points to its grid expansion plans.
- Oseni says most states lack the money, gas and grid.
- He says the federal government still struggles with 4,000–5,000MW.
- He urged a focus on fixing the national grid.
