‘Disheartening’ – Kwankwaso laments prolonged blackout in Northern states

The former Kano State governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso, on Monday decried the prolonged power outage in states across the Northern part of Nigeria.

The power outage in the region entered its seventh day on Monday.

According to the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), the blackout which affected over seven states in the North was caused by vandalism of the Shiroro-Mando transmission line which provided bulk electricity to the region.

Though the TCN promised to repair the damaged line, the company later stated that the blackouts would persist due to security challenges hindering repair works on critical transmission lines.

Kwankwaso, in a statement on his X handle, decried the situation which he said has been further compounded by the high cost of petrol and diesel in the country.

READ ALSO: ‘You’re not fit to speak for northerners’, Doguwa tells Kwankwaso

He wrote: “It is very disheartening that many parts of Northern Nigeria are in total darkness today due to vandalism on the important 330kV Shiroro-Kaduna power line that supplies the states of Kano and Kaduna and another line that supplies Bauchi, Gombe and other parts of the northeast.

“This situation has been further compounded by the high cost of petrol and diesel in Nigeria, which has further plunged homes into darkness and forced factories to close down.

“The time this crisis has taken to be addressed underscores the huge deficit of capacity our power sector has to address large-scale problems and this must be addressed to avoid any future disruption.

“It is about time that we look into alternative power sources to address our energy needs and we need to exploit the abundant resources available to this country.

“I wish to encourage all state governments and private investors to invest in alternative electricity sources, just like we did in Kano by installing two turbines in the Challawa Gorge and Tiga Dams to reduce the reliance on our inadequate and aged energy sources.”

It is very disheartening that many parts of Northern Nigeria are in total darkness today due to vandalism on the important 330kV Shiroro-Kaduna power line that supplies the states of Kano and Kaduna and another line that supplies Bauchi, Gombe and other parts of the northeast.…

— Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso (@KwankwasoRM) October 28, 2024

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