Former Kano State governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has broken silence over the persistent power outage affecting the Northern part of Nigeria which has left many homes in darkness.

Kwankwaso aired his grievances on Monday, October 28, via a statement shared on his official X handle.

The presidential candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) in the 2023 election who blamed the blackout on vandalism decried the high cost of petrol, stating that it has further compounded the situation in the North.

Kwankwaso lamented the poor capacity of the country’s power sector as clearly evident in the delay to restore power in the Northern region.

He said, “It is very disheartening that many parts of Northern Nigeria are in total darkness today due to vandalism on the important 330kV Shiroro-Kaduna power line that supplies the states of Kano and Kaduna and another line that supplies Bauchi, Gombe and other parts of the northeast.

This situation has been further compounded by the high cost of petrol and diesel in Nigeria, which has further plunged homes into darkness and forced factories to close down.

The time this crisis has taken to be addressed underscores the huge deficit of capacity our power sector has in order to address large scale problems and this must be addressed to avoid any future disruption.”

The NNPP leader called on government and private investors to shift their attention toward alternative electricity sources to reduce the reliance Nigeria’s aged energy sources which he described as ‘inadequate’.

Kwankwaso added: “It is about time that we look into alternative power sources to address our energy needs and we need to exploit the abundant resources available to this country.

I wish to encourage all state governments and private investors to invest in alternative electricity sources, just like we did in Kano by installing two turbines in the Challawa Gorge and Tiga Dams in order to reduce the reliance on our inadequate and aged energy sources.”

Meanwhile, the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) revealed that it is collaborating with the Office of the National Security Adviser to repair the vandalised Shiroro-Kaduna line that caused the blackout in Kaduna, Kano and other major cities in the north.

A statement by the General Manager, Public Affairs of TCN, Ndidi Mbah detailed that the TCN is working diligently to restore bulk power supply as quickly as possible despite prevailing security challenges.

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, has revealed President Bola Tinubu’s plans to convert fuel stations into Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) outlets to provide Nigerians with an affordable alternative to petrol.

In a statement on Wednesday, while addressing State House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, Ekpo confirmed that the President intends to expand the use of CNG across the country.

The minister emphasized that CNG is here to stay and urged Nigerians to embrace the initiative, adding that it is safe, cheaper, and environmentally friendly.

He said, “We are well aware that the President set up a Presidential Committee on the CNG to drive the CNG project. It is left for us to inform the general public that CNG has come to stay, and we have to follow that route because CNG is safe, cheaper, and protects the environment.

“It is important to note that when you are using CNG, you save a lot of money, a litre of fuel can go for N1000, but you get CNG at N200 per litre, which saves you N800.

“With the passion of Mr President, the push that he has given to us, we’ll try to drive the CNG programme to reach the nooks and crannies of this country.

“We have to take advantage of the natural resources, gas, that God has endowed us with.

“What we produce in our country is more than enough for us to use for CNG; and of course, you know, we are exporting to so many other countries.”