The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday accused the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) top officials of plotting to divert N20 billion “under the guise of emergency refurbishment” projects.
In a letter to the Ministry of Power, the union demanded a halt to all ongoing emergency procurements in the agency. In the letter, the NLC President Joe Ajaero warned that if not stopped, the alleged plot to divert the money through questionable contracts could cripple power transmission infrastructure and worsen the fragile electricity grid.
He asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the said projects. The union also demanded a probe of the alleged irregularities involving the sale of land behind a TCN substation in Katampe, Abuja, as well as what it described as an attempt to promote a worker employed in 2021 to the rank of Assistant General Manager in violation of service rules.
It said: “We are writing to alert your ministry of an imminent, large-scale heist being orchestrated within the TCN by a group of officials who have seemingly abandoned their oath of service in favour of a gluttonous rush to cash out and cause the company to collapse. “We demand your immediate intervention to truncate this quest. “To ensure the urgency of this matter is felt, we provide specific, glaring examples of the looting blueprint.
“Under the guise of emergency refurbishment, there are plans to award contracts which will amount to double-dipping of the highest order, designed to convert public funds into private fortunes for merely signing papers. “The plan to spend nearly N20 billion from TCN coffers on the socalled emergency refurbishment looks more like a contrivance to fleece a company that is already saddled with fiscal challenges.”
The NLC cited several projects it described as glaring examples of fiscal recklessness and potential corruption. Among them is a proposal to spend N191 million to control erosion on Tower T89 in Ihovbor, Okada, and N290.6 million for fencing and drainage at the Biu 132/33KV substation. It also flagged a planned N226 million project on Tower T27 in Etsako, Okpella–Ajaokuta, and another N239.5 million expenditure, it said, raised serious questions.
“There is no other way to explain the plan to spend N191 million to control erosion on one tower – T89 Ihovbor, Okada; N290,654,361 for fence and drainage at the Biu 132/33KV SubStation; N226,024,555 for just one Tower T27 at Etsako, Okpella Ajaokuta and N239,498,443.75, etc., but that they are all very questionable, negating the principles of fiscal discipline. “These amounts are not only excessive but also negate every principle of fiscal discipline expected in a public institution already facing financial challenges.
“It is apparent that there are plans to purchase the same item, specifically, specialised transformers and switchgears, in multiple batches from the same supplier at escalating costs. This is not procurement; this is money laundering disguised as grid expansion. “There is a scheme to overstock consumables (insulators, conductors, clamps) at far above market value under the guise of preparing for grid collapses. “These are items that will either be stored and left to rot, or simply never delivered, with the proceeds shared among the procurement committee and the vendors.”
The NLC added: “The cabal within TCN is hoping to use the cover of ‘emergency’ to bypass due process and bury these crimes in a blizzard of paperwork. “If these procurements proceed, the TCN will not only be poorer, but its operational capacity will be crippled for a decade. “The grid will become a permanent patient in the emergency room, not because we lack the technology, but because the funds meant to heal it were stolen.”
