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The All Progressives Congress Niger Delta Youth Vanguard has urged the Senate to immediately confirm Abdullahi Ramat as Chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
The youths noted that the delay is hurting ongoing power sector reforms.
The group made the demand in a statement issued on Friday and signed by its National Coordinator, Comr. Osarodion Darlington, expressing frustration that the country’s power regulator remains without a substantive head.
According to the statement, they stated that “the continued delay in ratifying and inaugurating Engr. Abdullahi Garba Ramat as Chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has raised serious concerns across the country.”
Ramat has already been screened and cleared by the Senate Committee on Power. However, the youths claim powerful influences in the leadership of the National Assembly are holding back the final ratification, describing the situation as “unjustifiable and harmful to Nigeria’s electricity reform agenda.”
The APC Niger Delta Youth Vanguard argued that the stall is an affront to constitutional processes and to President Bola Tinubu’s efforts to reposition the power sector.
“This delay, allegedly influenced by powerful interests within the leadership of the National Assembly, is not only a direct disregard of the constitutional powers of the President, but also a deliberate obstruction of the ongoing electricity reform agenda aimed at stabilizing Nigeria’s power sector,” the statement added.
NERC is the country’s apex electricity regulator responsible for licensing operators, setting tariffs, enforcing service standards, and protecting consumer interests.
The statement described Ramat as a seasoned professional capable of restoring efficiency and accountability to the regulator.
“Engr. Abdullahi Garba Ramat is not just qualified, he is exceptionally experienced and deeply grounded in the technical, administrative, and policy frameworks required to manage and reform the electricity regulatory environment. His track record of service, leadership, and professional integrity is well known across Nigeria’s energy sector. It is for this reason that Mr. President found him worthy of this critical national assignment,” it noted.
It warned that the ongoing delay amounts to sabotaging national development. “Holding this appointment to ransom is equivalent to holding Nigeria’s power sector hostage. Such actions undermine public trust and hinder the progress that this administration is working to achieve,” it said.
Darlington added that, the youths fully supports the government’s reforms and will continue to speak up as long as vested interests threaten progress. “We will not fold our hands while legitimate national progress is being sabotaged by vested interests,” it wrote.
Calling on lawmakers to act responsibly, the statement added: “We call on the Senate to do the needful now. Let merit prevail. Let governance function. Let progress continue.”