Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has accused a cabal within the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) of plotting to siphon nearly N20 billion through sham “emergency refurbishment” contracts, crippling the nation’s fragile power grid.
In a petition to Power Minister Adebayo Adelabu, signed by NLC President Joe Ajaero, the union warned the scheme bypasses due process, turning public funds into private gain amid TCN’s fiscal woes.
Ajaero described the contracts as “money laundering disguised as grid expansion,” predicting they would leave the grid “a permanent patient in the emergency room” and hobble operations for a decade.
NLC spotlighted egregious line items, including N191 million for erosion control at single Tower T89 in Ihovbor, Okada; N290.6 million for fencing and drainage at Biu 132/33kV Sub-Station; and N226 million for Tower T27 at Etsako, Okpella-Ajaokuta.
Allegations include repeated buys of transformers and switchgears from one supplier at rising prices, plus overstocking insulators and conductors above market rates under collapse-prep pretexts.
Beyond procurement, NLC called for probes into Katampe, Abuja substation land sales and a push to promote a September 2021 hire to Assistant General Manager by 2026, flouting TCN rules.
The union demanded an immediate freeze on all “emergency” processes pending forensic audit by anti-graft agencies like EFCC.
This scandal erupts as Nigeria grapples with frequent grid collapses, amplifying calls for transparency in the power sector.
