NEWS
How NERC’s New Commercial Billing Threatens Healthcare, Economy
The crippling impact of the newly introduced electricity billing, which classifies locations and businesses into two buckets of Band A or Band B has been decried.
President, Save-A-Life Foundation, Dr Richard Okoye, has expressed grave concerns about the scary electricity bill served on his hospital in Rivers State by the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution (PHED).
His outcry was contained in a video clip which went viral on Thursday,
Following the new billing classification, which put his hospital in Band A, Dr Okoye was aggrieved that his monthly bill jumped to N25,300,000, which he noted would have devastating effects on the healthcare sector in Nigeria, as well as other businesses.
Dr Okoye is not the only person speaking up against the excessive hike in electricity bills.
President, the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Festus Osifo, had made a similar call during the May Day Rally in Abuja, where he strongly urged the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to reverse the tariff hike within a week.
Osifo maintained that keeping the current billing levels would have severe impact on Nigeria’s economic growth, thus stressing the urgency of effective energy management to prevent further setbacks.
He maintained that the “glaring incompetence in managing this sector for the collective welfare of our citizens,” is a major factor constraining Nigeria’s economy.
The labour leader asserted that, “It is unethical to force Nigerians to pay higher tariffs for non-existent electricity. Estimated billing is an extortion and a daylight robbery against Nigerians.
Recall that the NERC on April 3, 2024 approved a significant increase in electricity tariffs for customers falling under the Band A classification.
Vice Chairman. NERC, Musliu Oseni, declared that the adjustment would raise the rate from the current N66 per kilowatt-hour to N225 per kilowatt-hour.
Though the billing reviews introduced by the NERC had attracted wide condemnation from Nigerians, the government had opted to stand behind the Commission.
For the government, the over 300 percent upward review was a take-it or leave-it for electricity consumers.
Nigeria’s Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, who defended the scandalous review before the Senate pointed to the cost of infrastructure required to keep the sector running.
In his opinion, the only way to make the sector attractive to investors was to get the consumers to bear the cost of building and maintaining the infrastructure, which would also make the sector bankable.
Adelabu said, “For this sector to be revived, government need to spend nothing less than 10 billion dollars annually in the next 10 years.
“This is because of the infrastructure requirement for the stability of the sector. But government cannot afford that. And so we must make this sector attractive to investors and to lenders.
“So for us to attract investors and investment, we must make the sector attractive, and the only way it can be made attractive is that there must be commercial pricing.”
However, Dr Okoye’s position, which Netizens applaud, is that the government’s decision to jerk up Band A’s tariff, would be an epidemic against the healthcare sector and other busiensses.
He described moving from paying N66 per kilowatt to N225 per kilowatt as a ‘Band A tariff epidemic”, capable of destroying the healthcare system of Nigeria.
Dr Okoye said, “By reason of us (the hospital) being in Band A, our monthly power bill is now shooting up to N25,300,000. That’s crazy; the hospitals are not business centres but only renders essential services to society.
“This Band A tariff epidemic is bound to destroy the country’s healthcare system.
“We are already struggling with an influx of doctors leaving the country. The majority of the healthcare system is struggling, as it were. If nothing is done to urgently revisit that decision, the Band A tariff epidemics will turn most hospitals into morgues. Something that could be preventable.
“Power (electricity) is the life of the healthcare delivery. Patients have hope and a sense of living again when the light is in the hospital. In addition to that, the majority of emergency drugs and anaesthetic drugs always want to be at a particular temperature which can be sustained by electricity. If this decision persists, it will come to a point where most of the drug will be in an unusable state, and it is already happening.”
Narrating his experience during a medical engagement to elaborate on the need for a hospital to be on steady power supply, Dr Okoye pointed out that an elderly woman who was supposed to be operated upon was given the requisite volume of propofol needed for her to relax but could not sleep because the potency of the drug has reduced due to poor storage, occasioned by inadequate power supply.
“We were surprised and thought the woman was alcoholic, and the anaesthetic increased the dose a little and asked again, only for the woman to confirm that she was fine again.
“After evaluation, it was discovered that though the drug was original but not well preserved, it would lose potency.
“That is to say, those who are diabetic in Nigeria should brace up because the majority of them would see no way to buy their drugs.
“In fact, they need to travel miles to get a hospital with a steady light to get drugs they are taking.
“While this Band A is on, teaching hospitals and Federal Medical Centres which used to enjoy some relative form of light because perhaps they would not be billed like other people. They are now downgrading them to Band B and channelling Band A to those they feel can pay to the detriment of the people.
“I can count on and on. Power (supply) is what determines whether a surgical procession would be successful or not. It determines the ‘before and after’ outcome of any surgery.”
“If the instruments are not properly sterilised, they may be the ones resistant to all antibiotics known, that even when we start getting it right, the worst has already happened,” Dr Okoye pointed out.
According to him, the Nigerian government must act fast in this regard to avoid it having a severe impact on the hospitals, the healthcare system, the health of Nigerians, and businesses generally.
“My heart melts when a teaching hospital can pack its instruments to go and sterilise in another hospital because it doesn’t have light. The FG should act because it is preventable as it is now,” he stressed.
It would appear thought that the government might not have the final say on this, as a Federal High Court in Kano had already issued restraining orders on the NERC and the Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDC).
The court ordered the parties to refrain from implementing the new electricity tariff for Band A consumers.
The Palestinian Islamist movement, Hamas, has officially dissolved the governing body that administered the Gaza Strip for nearly 19 years, marking a major political development amid ongoing efforts to implement a ceasefire agreement with Israel.
The announcement was made on Monday by Ismail al-Thawabta, head of Hamas’ Government Media Office, who confirmed that the head of the government’s emergency committee, Mohammed al-Farra, had resigned and the committee had been dissolved to facilitate a peaceful transition of civilian governance.
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According to al-Thawabta, administrative responsibilities will now be transferred to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), a technocratic body established by the Board of Peace created by US President Donald Trump following the ceasefire brokered between Hamas and Israel in October 2025.
Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem described the decision as a significant step aimed at removing obstacles to the political process.
“Hamas has taken a new step in that it will no longer be in charge of the Gaza Strip in order to remove any pretexts for the occupation, which continues its aggression and war of extermination,” Qassem said.
He added that the movement is fully prepared to hand over governmental responsibilities to the NCAG and expressed hope that the committee would soon be allowed to enter Gaza and begin its work.
A Hamas official also revealed that the group had informed other Palestinian factions of the decision during recent meetings in Cairo. The factions reportedly welcomed the move, describing it as a serious effort to enable the new committee to assume responsibility for governing the territory.
The NCAG, headed by Palestinian technocrat Ali Shaath, has so far remained outside Gaza due to reported Israeli objections to its entry into the enclave.
Hamas has governed Gaza since 2007 after seizing control from rival Palestinian faction Fatah following its victory in the 2006 legislative elections.
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Although the movement has repeatedly expressed its willingness to step away from day-to-day governance since the ceasefire took effect, negotiations over its disarmament and the future political administration of Gaza have remained deadlocked.
The first phase of the ceasefire agreement saw the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian prisoners detained by Israel.
However, talks on the second phase—which includes Hamas’ disarmament and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza—have stalled.
Israeli forces have instead expanded their military presence in the territory, reportedly controlling nearly 70 percent of Gaza.
Hamas insists that a Palestinian administration must first be established before it considers surrendering its weapons, while Israel continues to reject both Hamas remaining in power and an immediate return of the Palestinian Authority to govern Gaza.
The future governance of Gaza remains one of the biggest unresolved issues in negotiations aimed at securing a lasting peace in the region.
Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to resign from office or abandon any plans to seek re-election in 2027, accusing his administration of failing to address Nigeria’s worsening insecurity and demonstrating what he described as a lack of compassion for victims.
Obi made the call in a statement shared on his X account on Monday after visiting Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde over the continued captivity of schoolchildren abducted more than 50 days ago.
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The former Anambra State governor said the Federal Government’s handling of the abduction and the country’s growing security challenges reflected a complete collapse of governance, adding that many Nigerians now feel abandoned.
According to him, the prolonged captivity of the schoolchildren and the increasing wave of kidnappings across the country highlight the consequences of poor leadership.
“The ultimate cost of uncompassionate leadership, as evident in the country today, is turning citizens’ frustration into deep, volatile resentment,” Obi said.
“It is even more traumatising when the leader presiding over that collapse demonstrates clear incapacity and a lack of compassion.”
Obi expressed sympathy with the Oyo State Government and the families of the abducted pupils, saying they had every reason to feel disappointed after more than 50 days without any meaningful progress in securing the children’s release.
He disclosed that he had repeatedly spoken about the incident and appealed to the kidnappers to free the children.
He also revealed that he travelled to Ibadan on July 3 with political economist Prof. Pat Utomi to express solidarity with Governor Makinde and the affected families.
During the visit, Obi said he shared his experience in tackling insecurity as governor of Anambra State and recalled how former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and Goodluck Jonathan regularly contacted state governors whenever serious security challenges arose.
Obi, however, said he was shocked to learn that President Tinubu had allegedly not called Governor Makinde over the abduction.
Drawing comparisons with the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls’ abduction, Obi recalled that Tinubu was among those who strongly criticised then-President Goodluck Jonathan and called for his resignation over the handling of the crisis.
“I vividly recall that the current President, Bola Tinubu, led a team of vocal critics who called for President Jonathan’s immediate resignation over the incident. That call for immediate resignation should actually be the case in this matter,” he stated.
The Labour Party chieftain further claimed that more than 13 school kidnappings had occurred under the current administration, arguing that the continued abduction of schoolchildren and other Nigerians showed that governance had failed.
“The situation reflects a total lack of capacity and compassion, compounded by glaring insensitivity. Amid such an apparent display of incompetence, the President should either resign or, at the very least, abstain from seeking re-election for the sake of our dear country.
”
This call is patriotic, not political. A New Nigeria is Possible,” Obi concluded.
Seven OPEC+ members decided on Sunday to again raise oil production quotas as Gulf countries reel from the Middle East war.
Ministers from key OPEC+ countries Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria, and Oman met virtually on Sunday and “decided to implement a production adjustment of 188 thousand barrels per day,” a statement from the organisation said, adding that “this adjustment will be implemented in August 2026”.
Gulf countries had to cut output after the near-paralysis of the Strait of Hormuz orchestrated by Iran during the war in the Middle East, which blocked their oil exports for several months.
Between the first quarter of 2026 and May, combined production by Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Kuwait — three of the seven countries raising their quotas — fell by some six million barrels per day, OPEC data have shown.
But on June 17, Tehran and Washington signed a memorandum of understanding, committing themselves to removing obstacles to maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz for the duration of talks following the signature.
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Giovanni Staunovo, a commodity analyst at the Swiss bank UBS, told AFP that “for now, production is probably still below” OPEC+’s targets.
Time-consuming restart
Since the memorandum of understanding was signed, ship transport in the region has slowly recovered, with oil prices dropping sharply to levels comparable to those seen before the war in anticipation of a gradual return to normal.
Oil supplies through this shipping lane may already have exceeded ten million barrels a day, according to a US official quoted by the Bloomberg agency.
But the oil currently leaving the strait has up to now been sitting in tankers or storage facilities, said Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen, adding that “shut-in production takes time to restart”.
“Assuming shipping continues to normalise, July will show an improvement with August probably being the month where the pickup accelerates,” he told AFP.
Cohesion at Stake
“For next year, everybody is anticipating a surplus,” Jorge Leon, an analyst at Rystad Energy, told AFP.
Rebuilding the inventories that countries tapped during the conflict should help absorb the flows at first, but producers may face a strong downward pressure on prices later on.
And OPEC+, already weakened by the departure of the United Arab Emirates from the group in May, will have to manage sliding prices while members will push for production increases.
Iraq, in particular, has asked the cartel to raise production quotas to make up for the shortfall it incurred during the war in the Middle East, the Iraqi Oil Ministry said in late June.
But Hansen said the need for a higher quota “is not imminent” as production volumes are still far from their pre-conflict levels.
“Iraq’s request may become part of the 2027 capacity review, where production baselines will be examined,” he added.
At the end of the year, the OPEC+ is indeed due to reassess members’ quotas based on their ability to produce more, which could become a thorny issue.
Courtesy – AFP
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