Kehinde Fajobi
The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has linked Nigeria’s unreliable power supply to corruption within the power sector, pointing to substandard materials used by contractors as a primary cause of frequent outages.
During a visit by the House Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes in Abuja on Tuesday, Olukoyede shared insights from ongoing investigations into the sector, saying, “If you see some of the investigations we are carrying out within the power sector, you will shed tears.”
He explained that many contractors awarded power equipment supply projects often resorted to using cheaper, lower-quality materials.
“As I am talking to you now, we are grappling with electricity. People who were awarded contracts to supply electrical equipment, instead of using what they call 9.0 gauge, would go and buy 5.0,” Olukoyede stated.
“So every time, you see it tripping off, getting burnt. It falters, and it collapses. This is part of our problems.”
Olukoyede also pointed to a broader issue, revealing that capital project execution in Nigeria has been alarmingly low.
“In the last 15 to 20 years, we have not achieved up to 20% of our capital project implementation and execution,” he stated.
“How can we expect infrastructural development or national growth if we’re barely implementing the budget?”
He announced a push to reach 50% execution of capital projects for the year with support from the National Assembly, saying, “If we achieve 50%, we will be fine as a nation. The lack of implementation of the capital budget is one of Nigeria’s major problems.”
The EFCC chairman further disclosed that the commission currently has over 20,000 cases under investigation and has received more than 17,000 petitions in the past year.
He noted the challenge of handling the high caseload with limited staff, saying, “Between last October and now, we have opened over 4,800 new cases. And what is our staff count? We are less than 5,000.”
Committee Chairman Obinna Onwusibe urged the EFCC to collaborate with the judiciary to speed up trials and reduce the backlog of suspects awaiting trial, highlighting that “justice delayed is justice denied.”
He also called on the commission to operate with transparency and avoid any actions that could fuel perceptions of political bias, saying, “The negative narrative that the Agency is often used to settle political scores must be proven incorrect and inappropriate by the EFCC.”