News
NERC Dares Senate …‘Why We Can’t Abolish Fixed Charges’
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) says it will meet the Senate soon to inform it why fixed charges cannot be abolished now.
Chairman, Dr. Sam Amadi NERC made the disclosure to newsmen yesterday in Lagos.
According to Amadi, there is communication gap which needs to be filled on the electricity fixed charges.
“This is because it was the same National Assembly that legislated on the fixed charges which was embedded in the Power Reform Act.
“There is the need to visit the Senate to explain reasons why fixed charges cannot be totally abolished because it’s the responsibility of NERC to implement it.
“We believe that fixed charges are regulated, we share their concern as legislators who represent the people at their various constituencies,’’ he said.
Amadi said that NERC would discuss with the Senate to have better insight on the fixed charges which was regulated.
He added that the legislators had the right to make a resolution on fixed charges but they should be well informed about it.
The NERC chairman said that there was need to encourage investors who had invested so much in the sector to recover their funds.
It would be recalled that the Senate on August 11, directed the NERC to abolish the monthly fixed charges collected by distribution companies (DISCOs) from consumers.
It also directed NERC to ask the DISCOs to discontinue the practice of compulsory bulk metering of villages and rural communities.
The resolution followed a motion titled “Unfair Trade Practices of Electricity Distribution Companies in Nigeria’’, sponsored by Sen. Sam Egwu of Ebonyi State and Sen. David Umaru of Niger East Senatorial District.
The Senate accused the DISCOs of conspiracy to rip off innocent customers in spite of epileptic power supply to homes and business premises.
It urged NERC to inquire into the numerous complaints before it in line with the provisions of Section 74 (1) (b) of the Power Reform Act.
Fixed charges have been in existence since 2003 when the Federal Government introduced prepaid meters.
The fixed charges are the component of the electricity bill from which the DISCOs replace damaged or faulty distribution facilities — transformers, cables, feeders and so on, without bothering the consumer.
Initially, the fixed charge for prepaid meters increased from N225 to N500 and presently stands at N750.
There has been an outcry since the increase, prompting NERC, an independent regulatory agency to appeal for understanding.
Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has in Abuja pledged that his administration would ensure steady electricity supply for faster socio-economic development
Buhari stated this after being briefed by the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Power, Amb. Godknows Igali.
According to the president, his administration will give the fullest possible attention to boosting power supply in Nigeria because it was convinced that steady electricity will launch the country into faster economic growth.
He said that the Federal Government had already identified the critical problems in Nigeria’s power sector and was taking appropriate actions to address them.
The president revealed that his administration had also prioritised certain measures in its action plan to boost electricity supply in Nigeria.
“The problems besetting our power sector are not difficult to identify. Therefore, priorities can be easily set in order to tackle them.
“The problems are more with transmission than generation, and we equally need to secure the power infrastructure round the country. “We will address all these issues,’’ he assured.
Igali had informed the president that power generation in Nigeria, which was 1,750megawatts (MW) in 1999, had now peaked at 4,600MW.
He added that gas was available to take generation to 5,500 MW in a short time, but that the country needed to expand its electricity infrastructure to accommodate additional power generation.
News
FG Ends Passport Production At Multiple Centres After 62 Years

The Nigeria Immigration Service has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this yesterday while inspecting Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
He said the centralised production system aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for better service delivery.
News
FAAC Disburses N2.225trn For August, Highest In Nigeria

The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has disbursed N2.225 trillion as federation revenue for the month of August 2025, the highest ever allocation to the three tiers of government and other statutory recipients.
This marks the second consecutive month that FAAC disbursements have crossed the N2 trillion mark.
The revenue, shared at the August 2025 FAAC meeting in Abuja, was buoyed by increases in oil and gas royalty, value-added tax (VAT), and common external tariff (CET) levies, according to a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting.
Out of the N2.225 trillion total distributable revenue, FAAC said N1,478.593 trillion came from statutory revenue, N672.903 billion from VAT, N32.338 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL), and N41.284 billion from Exchange Difference.
The communiqué revealed that gross federation revenue for the month stood at N3.635 trillion. From this amount, N124.839 billion was deducted as cost of collection, while N1,285.845 trillion was set aside for transfers, interventions, refunds, and savings.
From the statutory revenue of N1.478 trillion, the Federal Government received N684.462 billion, State Governments received N347.168 billion, and Local Government Councils received N267.652 billion. A further N179.311 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) went to oil-producing states as derivation revenue.
From the distributable VAT revenue of N672.903 billion, the Federal Government received N100.935 billion, the states received N336.452 billion, while the local governments got N235.516 billion.
Of the N32.338 billion shared from EMTL, the Federal Government received N4.851 billion, the States received N16.169 billion, and the Local Governments received N11.318 billion.
From the N41.284 billion exchange difference, the Federal Government received N19.799 billion, the states received N10.042 billion, and the local governments received N7.742 billion, while N3.701 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) was shared to the oil-producing states as derivation.
News
KenPoly Governing Council Decries Inadequate Power Supply, Poor Infrastructure On Campus
The Governing Council of Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic, Bori, has decried the inadequate power supply and poor state of infrastructural facilities and equipment at the institution.
The Council also appealed to the government, including Non-Governmental Organisations, agencies, as well as well-meaning Rivers people to intervene to restore and sustain the laudable gesture, dreams and aspirations of the founding fathers of the polytechnic.
The Chairman of the newly inaugurated Council, Professor Friday B. Sigalo, made this appeal during a tour of facilities at the Polytechnic, recently.
Accompanied by members of the team, Prof Sigalo emphasised the position of technology, technical and vocational education in sustainable development.
He noted that with the prospects on ground, and the programmes and activities undertaken in the polytechnic, there is no doubt that the institution would add values to the educational system in our society and foster the desired development, if the existing challenges are jointly tackled.
This was contained in a statement signed by Deputy Registrar, Public Relations, Kenpoly, Innocent Ogbonda-Nwanwu, and made available to The Tide in Port Harcourt.
The chairman who restated the intention of his team of technocrats to ensure that KenPoly enjoys desirable face-lift, said the Council would deliver on its core mandates, accordingly.
Earlier, the Rector, KenPoly Engr. Dr. Ledum S. Gwarah, commended the appointment of Professor Friday B. Sigalo as Chairman of the KenPoly Governing Council.
He described him and his team as seasoned technocrats and expressed confidence in their ability to succeed.
The Rector pledged the management’s support to the Council to ensure that KenPoly resumes its rightful place in the comity of polytechnics in the country.
Facilities visited by the Governing Council include KenPoly workshops, laboratories, skills acquisition centre, library, hostels and medical centre.
Chinedu Wosu
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