The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, has addressed the incident that occurred during the presentation of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) 2025 budget to the Joint Committees on Police Affairs and Police Institutions at the National Assembly Complex, Abuja, on January 16, 2025.

The IGP, in a statement on Friday, January 17, 2025, described the disruption as unnecessary and avoidable, clarifying that the document he presented was shared with all committee members beforehand.

According to the IGP explained that two versions of the budget documents were provided to the committee members: a comprehensive copy and an abridged version.

While both contained same figures and facts, the abridged version used simplified language to facilitate understanding.

At the start of the session, the committee members unanimously agreed with a motion that the IGP should present the abridged version since they all had access to both documents.

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However, distinguished Senator Onyekachi Nwoebonyi (Ebonyi North), who arrived late, began referencing the comprehensive version while the IGP presented the abridged version. Despite explanations from other committee members about the earlier agreement and the consistency between both versions, the senator refused to listen and abruptly left the session.

The IGP described the incident as unnecessary drama that could have been avoided had the senator been receptive to the clarifications provided.

The IGP reiterates that the Nigeria Police Force did not submit two different 2025 budgetary proposal documents to the joint committees at the National Assembly, contrary to the reports circulating in the news and media outlets.

The Inspector-General has also reiterated the significant challenges the NPF faces with budget allocations.

These include inadequate funding, which hampers modernization and effective service delivery, the restrictive envelope budget system, and delays in fund releases.

These challenges continue to impede the Force’s ability to address its expanding and dynamic responsibilities.

In conclusion, the IGP called on the public to remain patient and supportive of the Police as the Force remains committed to delivering exceptional service with professionalism and dedication.

ACP OLUMUYIWA ADEJOBI, mnipr, mipra, fCAI
FORCE PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICER
FORCE HEADQUARTERS,
ABUJA.
17th January 2025.

Obong Victor Attah, former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, has accused ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo of halting his efforts to distribute electricity generated by a power plant he built in the state.

Attah, who served as governor from 1999 to 2007 during Obasanjo’s presidency, revealed that despite the approval of the project by Obasanjo, the then president later imposed a law requiring that the electricity generated by the Akwa Ibom power plant be added to the national grid rather than being used to supply the state.

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Attah made the allegations during an appearance on Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, a socio-political program aired on Channels Television on Friday.

He criticized the existing constitutional framework, stating that a new constitution and federal arrangement would empower states to be more autonomous and less subordinate to the central government.

“I decided I want to give Akwa Ibom State power. The president said no. The Federal Government is providing power for the country. I said: ‘I want to give Akwa Ibom State power’ and then I succeeded in building that power station,” Attah recalled.

“The president came and I saw that he was happy about what I was doing. He commissioned the power station but went back to Abuja and brought a law that if you generate, you cannot distribute it.”

Attah lamented that despite using state funds to build the power station, he was barred from distributing the generated electricity within Akwa Ibom.

Instead, it had to be added to the national grid, which he described as inefficient and prone to frequent failures.

“I used Akwa Ibom money (to build the plant) but I cannot distribute power to Akwa Ibom people? I have to put it in the National Grid that is failing all the time. That was how that ended,” he said, expressing his frustration that Akwa Ibom, like many other states, still lacks 24-hour reliable power.

Attah further explained that his actions were not driven by political party lines, as he was a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the time.

He noted that Obasanjo’s opposition was more about the structural flaws of Nigeria’s federal system, which he believes stifles progress.

“It does not say much about party politics; it says much about the constitution that we have — the non-federal constitution that we have,” Attah said.

“If we have a true federal constitution it would never have happened. I would have built my power station. Whatever party I belong to won’t have mattered. What is fundamentally wrong with us is the nature of the constitution that we have today — it is not a federal constitution and unless and until we go federal, we will not make progress.”

Reflecting on the persistent challenges of the power sector, Attah criticized Nigeria’s inefficient national grid and highlighted the missed opportunity for states to take charge of their own energy needs.

“We generate power and put it in the national grid – the inefficient national grid that is always collapsing…Every kobo that was spent was in Akwa Ibom money to build that power station but a faulty constitution and constitutional arrangement makes it possible for a president to say even this power station, I’m taking it from you and I’m putting it in the national grid.”

Attah also welcomed the recent amendment to the Electricity Act of 2023, which now allows states to generate, distribute, and regulate electricity.

He expressed confidence that the new law would enable Akwa Ibom to have its own power company that could meet the state’s energy needs.

“Now that the new law has been brought out, our governor (Umo Eno) is working very hard to make sure that we now have an Akwa Ibom power company that not only generate but distribute power to the people,” Attah said.

For decades, Nigeria has grappled with chronic power supply issues, which hinder economic productivity and development.

Despite efforts to privatize the sector, electricity generation, transmission, and distribution have remained plagued by policy inconsistency and insufficient investment.

In 2024, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) approved an increase in electricity prices, while the costs of petrol and diesel—common alternatives to power supply—have also surged, further exacerbating the challenges faced by consumers.

In a move to decentralize the electricity market, NERC granted licenses to several states, including Enugu, Ekiti, Ondo, Imo, Edo, Kogi, Oyo, and Lagos, to independently generate and distribute power.

Mojisola Meranda on Friday presided over her first plenary session as Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, following the controversial removal of Mudashiru Obasa.

The session, which began at 11 a.m., was attended by the majority of lawmakers, though Obasa, who represented Agege Constituency 1, was conspicuously absent.

Obasa’s removal on Monday came after a majority of House members voted against him over allegations of misconduct and financial misappropriation.

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Before his ousting, Obasa was reportedly on vacation in Atlanta, United States, and it remains unclear whether he has returned to Nigeria. He has yet to make any public statement regarding the allegations.

During the plenary, Meranda, who made history as the first female Speaker of the Lagos Assembly, announced the new principal officers of the House.

In her inaugural address, she vowed to “work tirelessly to uphold the principles of transparency, good governance, and other noble tenets that this noble House stands for.”

Meranda’s leadership has quickly garnered support from the highest levels of the ruling party.

Just 24 hours after being sworn in, she received the official endorsement of the Governance Advisory Council (GAC), the apex decision-making body of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State.

The endorsement took place during a closed-door meeting with key principal officers at Lagos House, Marina, signaling robust party backing for Meranda’s leadership.