By Seun Ibiyemi
The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, has constituted a ministerial committee involving security agencies and power sector stakeholders to tackle the persistent vandalism of electricity infrastructure and improve the reliability of power supply across the country.
The committee is expected to develop and coordinate measures to prevent attacks on generation, transmission and distribution assets, which have continued to disrupt electricity supply, increase repair costs and threaten investments in the power sector.
The initiative forms part of the Federal Government’s efforts to strengthen the protection of critical electricity infrastructure and ensure more stable power supply for households, businesses and industries.
At the committee’s inaugural meeting, participants examined strategies for preventing vandalism and defined the responsibilities of relevant institutions in addressing the problem.
The meeting 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 Ministry of Power and relevant agencies.
The committee’s activities will be aligned with the critical infrastructure unit of the ONSA, reinforcing the classification of electricity assets as a national security priority.
The committee was established against the backdrop of recurring attacks on electricity infrastructure, which undermine efforts to improve supply and impose additional financial burdens on power sector operators.
Vandalism of transmission lines, transformers, distribution equipment and other electricity assets can trigger outages, disrupt commercial activities and require operators to commit additional resources to repairs and replacement.
The attacks also threaten investments required to expand generation, strengthen transmission capacity and improve electricity distribution across the country.
Participants at the inaugural meeting proposed a range of measures to address the menace, including stricter enforcement of existing laws against vandalism and the prosecution of offenders.
They also resolved to deploy technology to strengthen the protection and monitoring of critical national assets, alongside sensitisation and advocacy campaigns aimed at preventing incidents before they occur.
All participating institutions pledged to work collaboratively towards ending the destruction of electricity infrastructure.
The involvement of the ONSA, NSCDC and other security stakeholders is intended to improve coordination between the power sector and agencies responsible for protecting national infrastructure.
By defining the responsibilities of individual institutions, the committee is expected to strengthen accountability and ensure a more coordinated response to threats against electricity assets.
The alignment with the ONSA’s critical infrastructure unit also places the protection of power facilities within the broader national security framework.
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The government hopes that stronger enforcement, technology-driven surveillance and public awareness will help deter vandals and reduce disruptions arising from attacks on electricity infrastructure.
The committee is scheduled to reconvene next week to assess progress and review the implementation of the proposed measures.
Effective implementation is expected to reduce outages caused by infrastructure attacks, lower avoidable repair costs and strengthen the protection of public and private investments in the electricity industry.
The initiative comes as Nigeria continues to pursue improvements in electricity supply, with reliable power remaining critical to industrial productivity, business operations and household welfare.
However, the impact of the committee will depend on the effective enforcement of existing laws, sustained inter-agency cooperation and the timely implementation of its proposed interventions.
The Federal Government is seeking to ensure that electricity infrastructure is better protected against vandalism, allowing power sector investments to deliver more dependable service to consumers.
