Reps summon CBN, Discos over $321m, N18.2bn electricity loans

The House of Representatives Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has summoned the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and 11 electricity distribution companies (Discos) over utilization of $321 million and N18.2 billion loans for electricity projects.

The affected agencies are to appear before the committee on November 8.

Chairman of the PAC, Bamidele Salam issued the summons when the Managing Director of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Engr. Sule Abdulaziz appeared before the committee Thursday.

Salam said a petition was received on the lack of judicious use of the funds, which were paid to the DISCOs by the CBN on prompting of the TCN.

• Boko Haram attacks: Buni to meet service chiefs on border patrol
• Reps reject N5bn presidential yacht, pass supplementary budget

Abdulaziz had told the committee that the funds were paid directly to the DISCOs by the CBN to embark on the various projects.

He said the repayment of the loans was from the revenue of the TCN.

But chairman of the committee, Bamidele Salam who raised concern, demanded that the TCN should provide details of disbursement of the loans, procurement processes as well as the numbers of Discos involved, among others.

Salam said, “Sometime in 202, the then President Muhammadu Buhari granted that certain funds be made available for the purpose of enhancing the capacity of our transmission and distribution lines to be able to have a more robust power sector intervention and these funds were made available for certain projects to the distribution companies.

“It is the concern of the petitioner that the fund have not been judiciously used and that the project ought to have been delivered by now upon which we caused a letter to be written to the Transmission Company of Nigeria which also sent in a response stating the status report of the project as well as the procedure for the implementation of that loan disbursement and execution of the project by the distribution companies.

“Our concern is to ensure that all our institutions work well in accordance with the law and in accordance with global best practices and to ensure money is judiciously utilized.”

The TCN boss in his response said there was a gap in the electricity sector and the distribution companies were complaining that the TCN was not giving them supply.