Atiku Camp Blasts Power Minister over ‘Freezers Freezing’ Remark

The media aide to the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, Paul Ibe, has criticised the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, over his claim that some Nigerians are asking the government to slow down improvements in electricity supply because their freezers are now freezing continuously.

Ibe, in a post on his X handle on Thursday, dismissed the minister’s comment as disconnected from the reality faced by Nigerians battling high energy costs and unreliable electricity supply.

Tegbe had made the remark on Wednesday while commissioning a 3-megawatt solar hybrid power project at Yakubu Gowon University, formerly the University of Abuja.

The minister said some areas that previously experienced prolonged power outages were now receiving up to 18 hours of electricity daily.

“Places that didn’t have light at all for three months are now having 18 hours of light.

“Some areas called me to say, look, I should slow down, that everything in their freezer is freezing,” Tegbe said.

He added that a freezer was meant to preserve food, saying, “Let it freeze the food that needs to be frozen.”

But Ibe challenged the picture of widespread improvement painted by the minister, citing official electricity data to argue that the country’s power situation remained constrained.

He asserted that the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s April 2026 operational performance factsheet indicated that an average of 4,286 megawatts was available for dispatch from 13,625MW of installed grid-connected capacity during the month, representing a 31 per cent plant availability factor.

Ibe said the government should focus on the broader challenges confronting households and businesses instead of celebrating the reported experience of a few electricity consumers.

He argued that Nigerians were dealing with rising energy, food and transportation costs, while small businesses were also facing increased operating expenses.

“The real story is not that Nigerians’ freezers are freezing. What is freezing is the quality of life of Nigerians,” Ibe said.

He further argued that household incomes were being squeezed by inflation and that high energy costs were putting pressure on businesses.

“Give Nigerians reliable and affordable electricity. Let their freezers freeze. Stop freezing their lives,” he added.

Tegbe, while highlighting recent improvements, had also acknowledged that the power sector continued to face significant infrastructure challenges.

He said some electricity infrastructure across the country was more than 40 years old and was being replaced gradually.

The minister also disclosed that three major transmission towers in Birnin Kebbi had recently been destroyed by vandals. According to him, the affected infrastructure serves Kebbi State and extends towards Niger Republic.

He said the government had constituted a joint committee involving the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps to protect critical electricity infrastructure and tackle vandalism.

On the university project, Tegbe said the facility comprises a 3.3MW solar array, 3MW AC output capacity and battery storage, with power supplied to critical facilities including lecture halls, laboratories, ICT facilities, administrative buildings and campus lighting.

The project has 6,078 photovoltaic panels and 388 streetlights, according to the minister.