The Federal Government has approved plans to develop new eastern and western electricity grids as part of efforts to tackle the recurring collapse of Nigeria’s national power grid.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, disclosed this at an energy conference in Lagos, stating that the government was preparing to begin the procurement process for the projects.

According to the minister, Nigerians could begin to experience the benefits of the planned grid expansion within the next two to three years.

He explained that the initiative forms part of broader efforts to strengthen electricity transmission infrastructure and improve the reliability of power supply across the country.

Tegbe said the government had divided Nigeria into three energy zones to identify areas requiring urgent intervention and ensure that available resources were directed towards the most critical challenges.

“We have clustered Nigeria into three energy zones. The first one is the one that demands 50 per cent. If you fix Lagos and you fix the Abuja corridors, you’ve solved more than half of the problem of Nigeria. Because you can’t do that alone based on operational efficiency, you also have to build out your grid.

“The President has approved that we commence the process of building out the grid: East and Western grid. We’re going through the procurement process, but it’s something you’ll see the benefits in two to three years,” the minister said.

He also revealed that the government had commenced a nationwide technical audit of the electricity transmission infrastructure to identify specific problems and determine the appropriate solutions.

Tegbe explained that the assessment would help the government avoid spending resources on the wrong repairs, noting that different faults require different technical interventions.

“We have started a technical audit across the entire country to say where do we have issues, and what issues specifically do we have. I don’t want to fix transformer issues where I have conductor and relay problems. I don’t want to fix insulators where the challenges I actually have are towers. So, we will finish that technical audit in the next couple of weeks. When we finish it, we then target our prioritised areas,” he stated.

The minister acknowledged that the government had inherited longstanding challenges in the power sector, some of which date back several decades.

He said his experience before taking office had given him a different perspective on the difficulties facing the industry, particularly the ageing transmission infrastructure.

“This government has inherited a problem of 50 years. Before I became the Minister of Power, honestly, I used to think that everybody in the power sector just didn’t know their left from right. But the reality is, some of the towers have gone down with some of the transmission lines there,” Tegbe said.

He added that during a visit to one of the affected sites, he observed transmission infrastructure bearing the logo of the Electricity Corporation of Nigeria (ECN), an organisation that existed before the National Electric Power Authority (NEPA).

“When I went to the site, I saw some of them carrying the logo of ECN. Many people in this room might not know what ECN is. ECN predated NEPA. So, some of these things were built 50 years ago. That is the reality,” he said.

The minister maintained that the technical audit would help the government prioritise critical areas for intervention as it works towards modernising the national grid and reducing the frequency of power system failures.

The Federal Government has proposed a new examination timetable aimed at ensuring that candidates who sit for the 2027 West African Examinations Council (WAEC), National Examinations Council (NECO) and other major external examinations receive their results by August 2027.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

The initiative is intended to ensure that students obtain their results before the September admission process into universities, polytechnics and colleges of education begins.

The Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Sa’id Ahmad, disclosed the plan during a meeting with heads and representatives of examination bodies at the Federal Ministry of Education headquarters in Abuja.

According to a statement released on Wednesday night by the ministry’s Director of Press and Public Relations, Boriowo Folasade, the government wants examination bodies to collaborate in meeting the proposed deadlines.

“The meeting focused on harmonising examination schedules, preventing clashes among major examinations and ensuring that results are processed and released within agreed timelines,” the statement said.

Under the proposed timetable, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) is expected to conduct the 2027 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) between March 15 and March 25.

Candidates who sit for the UTME are expected to receive their results in March, enabling them to proceed to the next stages of the tertiary admission process.

The NECO Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) is scheduled to hold from April 1 to May 14, 2027.

Meanwhile, the WAEC West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) is expected to commence on May 11 and end on June 18.

The National Business and Technical Examinations Board (NABTEB) examination is scheduled to take place between June 1 and July 5, 2027.

Similarly, the National Board for Arabic and Islamic Studies (NBAIS) examination is expected to run from June 10 to July 9.

Results for the NABTEB and NBAIS examinations are also expected to be released in August, in line with the government’s proposed timeline.

The Federal Government’s plan is designed to harmonise the examination calendar and ensure that students have access to their results in good time for the 2027 tertiary institution admission process.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has declared that it is better prepared than opposition parties for the 2027 general elections.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

The ruling party accused former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, and Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), of focusing more on criticising President Bola Tinubu than presenting their own plans for Nigerians.

The APC National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, made the remarks during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday.

Morka spoke shortly after the ruling party inaugurated its Presidential Campaign Council in Abuja, stating that the APC had begun putting its campaign plans and structures in place ahead of the elections.

He maintained that the party was taking the 2027 contest seriously and would leave nothing to chance.

According to him, the APC’s performance in bye-elections and other polls conducted since the 2023 general elections demonstrated the effectiveness of its political structures and preparation.

“Virtually all elections that has been called, bye-elections, whatever election, since the last general elections, we’ve won fantastically. There is a reason for that. It is because we prepare, we do not take anything or leave anything to chance,” Morka said.

He explained that the party was finalising its campaign strategies and preparing for a large-scale mobilisation exercise ahead of the polls.

“We prepare, we do our homework, we put together our systems and we trigger massive campaigns, which is what we are about to do,” he stated.

The APC spokesman also dismissed suggestions that the party’s early preparations were a sign of desperation, arguing that planning ahead was a normal responsibility for any serious political organisation.

Morka subsequently criticised Atiku and Obi, accusing them of concentrating on what they believe Tinubu has failed to accomplish rather than explaining what they would do differently if elected.

“So, look, I don’t think it’s a sign of desperation to prepare. As a matter of fact, I think we are more preparing than the people in the opposition,” he said.

He added, “The Atikus, The Peter Obis, who are simply shooting the breeze, doing nothing to speak for themselves rather than tell you what you think the president is not doing or should be doing.”

Morka insisted that the APC remained focused on its own agenda and was determined to contest and win the next general elections.

“We mind our business and we are in this to compete and win the next election,” he added.

During the interview, the APC spokesman was also asked whether Nigerians liked and trusted the ruling party.

Responding, Morka pointed to the party’s control of the federal government and several state governments as evidence of its electoral support.

“First of all, let me remind you that the APC is the governing party in this country, put in office by Nigerians. So, already, the answer to your question has been codified in an election of the APC, that is governing, not just at the centre but in so many states of our country. So, the answer is yes,” he said.