By Ayomide Otitoju
Minister of Power Joseph Tegbe has convened a ministerial committee comprising security agencies and power sector stakeholders to address the vandalism of electricity infrastructure across Nigeria.
The committee was established to develop coordinated measures to prevent attacks on generation, transmission and distribution assets, which disrupt electricity supply, increase repair costs and undermine investment in the sector.
Its inaugural meeting in Abuja was attended by the Special Adviser to the President on Homeland Security, Major General Adeyinka A. Famadewa; directors from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA); the leadership of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC); the Permanent Secretary; and directors from the Federal Ministry of Power and relevant agencies.
The committee’s work will be aligned with the ONSA’s critical infrastructure unit, reflecting the importance of protecting power assets as a national security priority.
During the meeting, participants proposed measures to curb vandalism and outlined the responsibilities of their respective institutions. They agreed to enforce existing laws against vandalism, ensure offenders are brought to justice, deploy technology to protect critical infrastructure, and intensify public sensitisation and advocacy to prevent attacks.
The agencies also pledged to strengthen collaboration to address the problem.
The committee is scheduled to reconvene next week to assess progress and review implementation efforts.
The initiative aims to reduce outages caused by infrastructure attacks, improve the reliability of electricity supply and strengthen the protection of public and private investment in the power sector.
