FG Plans National Power Complaints Call Centre To Give Nigerians Direct Line To Government

CYRIACUS IZUEKWE 

The Federal Government has announced plans to establish a national electricity complaints call centre that will give consumers across Nigeria direct access to government for reporting service challenges and tracking complaints to resolution.

The Minister of Power, Chief Joseph O. Tegbe, disclosed this in Abuja while commissioning a 3-megawatt hybrid solar power project and Renewable Energy Workshop and Training Centre at Yakubu Gowon University, Abuja.

Tegbe said the initiative is part of efforts by the Federal Government to strengthen accountability, responsiveness and consumer confidence in the nation’s power sector.

According to the Minister, the call centre will serve as a central platform where electricity complaints from any part of the country can be lodged, monitored and resolved promptly.

“My office is working on a call centre where electricity complaints across the country can be lodged and resolved,” Tegbe said.

He explained that beyond improving service delivery, the project will also create sustainable job opportunities for young Nigerians who will be engaged to manage the centre.

The Minister also unveiled plans for a dedicated national channel for reporting vandalism of critical power infrastructure.

He said the channel will enable Nigerians to quickly alert relevant authorities to cases of vandalism involving transformers, transmission towers, distribution lines and other electricity assets to allow for rapid intervention and repairs.

Tegbe stated that the Federal Government is collaborating with security agencies, including the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to curb the rising cases of destruction of power infrastructure across the country.

He called on Nigerians, especially members of the university community, to take ownership of power assets in their environment and see their protection as a shared responsibility.

The Minister urged the public to report any act of vandalism promptly, stressing that protecting public power infrastructure is critical to sustaining improved electricity supply.

The commissioning ceremony of the hybrid solar project provided the platform for the Minister to emphasize the need for public participation in safeguarding investments in the power sector.

The 3-megawatt hybrid solar power project, delivered under Phase II of the Federal Government’s Energising Education Programme, EEP, by the Rural Electrification Agency, REA, is designed to provide reliable power for teaching, research, laboratories and digital services at the university.

The project also includes 388 solar-powered streetlights installed to enhance visibility and improve security across the university campus at night.

In his remarks, the Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency, Abba Aliyu, said the Federal Government is also working on establishing the Renewable Asset Management Company to ensure proper management, maintenance and protection of renewable energy assets after commissioning.

Aliyu noted that the company will help to sustain the investments being made in the renewable energy space and ensure that projects continue to serve beneficiary institutions effectively.

According to the Federal Government, the planned complaints centre and vandalism reporting channel are part of broader reforms aimed at building a power sector that is more responsive, accountable, transparent and connected to the people it serves.

The government stressed that the next phase of power sector reform will not only focus on building new infrastructure but also on ensuring that Nigerians have a clear and functional channel to report problems, that public assets are protected from vandals, and that every complaint receives prompt action.