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“No Light, No Vote”: Afikpo youths stage protest over 25-year power blackout
Youths in the Afikpo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State have staged a protest over what they described as more than 25 years of electricity blackout, declaring that there would be no electoral activities in the area until power is restored.
The protesters, who marched in large numbers, lamented that despite Afikpo producing high-ranking political office holders, including the deputy governor, federal and state lawmakers, local government officials, and commissioners, the area has remained without electricity.
Speaking on behalf of the Odinma Afikpo group, Mr. Charles Otu, a journalist and social activist, said elected representatives from the area must be held accountable, stressing that constructive criticism should not be misconstrued as negativity.
“We want Afikpo Light restored. That was after over a decade. Nothing changed. In 2019, we were promised by then Governor Umahi that before the 2019 elections, Afikpo Light would be restored.
“A five-man committee was set up, made up of Afikpo sons and daughters. To date, nothing has happened. In 2022, again, this agitation came through social media: we want Afikpo light restored.
“From 2022 till now, nothing has changed. The last episode was in 2024, when this same agitation started on Facebook. That was when a famous coinage of Agui, where a bold young man spoke and said the elected people should go to wherever this electricity is having problems and fix it. We have a 133 KV substation in Amasiri. They have been working on that substation since 2001.
“Somebody born in 2001 till now is 25 years old. The person is ready to become a mother if she’s a woman. If he’s a boy, he’s done with the university and he’s now asking for employment.
“Why is it difficult to energize the African substation? The governor of Ebonyi state, Mr. Francis Nwifuru, has intervened in this matter. Gave 208 million. In 2024, they told us, they said, “Look,”
“It won’t take us three months. It won’t take us three months. And this light will be restored. That was where we were in 2024. This is 2026. Two years after what has happened to our people. That’s why we came,” Otu said.
The protest, however, was not without internal tensions, as some community stakeholders were accused of attempting to discourage the agitation, describing it as unnecessary criticism.
“They told us they had a general assembly. And they said they don’t want people to write. We were waiting for the elders to come out plain and tell us what they meant.
“What did you say? It’s criticism. Is it for me, a lawmaker, asking me, a journalist, why he made an event about Afikpo electricity where he represents me and he has been in the House of Representatives for 12 years? Is that what you call criticism? If that is what Afikpo has called criticism today, I am saying that it is not criticism. And I am saying that as a journalist, even if they say they are placing a fine of 100,000 for those who write,
“It is not going to affect me. I am a journalist, and I will not be stopped. I am not going to stop talking about it; I have talked about development issues in Ebonyi for 15 years. Those who know me very well know that in 2011, since my practice, right from Ebonyi Voice till now, you are my colleagues and should bear witness to me. I have always stood for developmental journalism. What will bring development? Is our world developed in darkness? The answer is no,” he said.
Another protest leader, Mr. Iheukwumere Okogwu Otu said the demonstration was aimed at sensitizing leaders to their responsibilities, emphasizing that criticism is an essential part of governance.
“Like, these are people. And it is not a new story that for over two decades, we’ve not had steady lights. And the bulk of this criticism is because of this lack of electricity. A boy, a girl, or a child that is up to 15 or 20 years old doesn’t know what electricity is. If light comes up and the generator is not on, the boy of 15 years will be wondering where the light is coming from. That is how bad it is. And this is a town that has a House of Rep member, deputy appropriation chairman.
“Deputy governor, what do you call it, two House of Assembly members, three commissioners, and all that you have in government? And the place has been abandoned with normalized darkness in Afikpo. And the people you see here have reduced. We were over 2,000 in the morning because it’s a matter of concern. No right-thinking person would just endure this situation,” Iheukwumere said.
He further decried the lack of human and capital development in the area, noting that many graduates remain unemployed while resources are allegedly mismanaged.
“And we are saying, without this power restoration, we are not voting and won’t allow anybody to campaign.
“That is our resolve. No light. No vote. No light. No vote. So that is our resolve because we’ve traveled and we’ve seen how things work. Most of the persons you’re seeing here, they have masters.
“Some even have doctorate degrees. And we have somebody in the House of Rep who’s seen how jobs are being gotten; the advertisements you see online and in the newspaper have already been given. They share jobs now. Where is the one for our people, our constituency? Instead, they want to keep us especially in darkness because if 500 million can be budgeted for fish into the river, is it 2 billion or 3 billion that he cannot also do it the way he did it to achieve that 500 million for our electricity?
“So it’s something that is confusing. And I don’t know, most of us are just helpless, especially our elders. I don’t know where and how this town, a town that houses the who’s who, people who are courageous, people who are brave, and I don’t know where they are.
“The promise I’m making to our people, even if it’s only me, is the truth; I must continue to agitate, I must continue to ask for the things that are right for the people; I can’t do otherwise,” he added.
A female protester, Lady Sheravin Mbe, also told reporters that Afikpo once enjoyed electricity decades ago, recalling efforts by a former lawmaker to restore power.
“You could imagine since 1970, I think from that time till now, it should be more than 49 years. What happened now? That our children, our grandchildren, would say we don’t have need of this wire; I do tell them we once had light in Afikpo.
“They now ask me what happened now. I told them I don’t know. But some so-called big fish in Afikpo. Because I know there’s a lady here that wanted this light and stood firm to make sure that there’s light in Afikpo. And her name is Maria Udewachi; her efforts were truncated because she is a woman,” she added.
The protesters insisted that their stance remains unchanged, warning that political campaigns and voting would be resisted if the electricity issue is not urgently addressed.
Observers say the development could have implications for upcoming local government elections and the 2027 general elections if the grievances remain unresolved.
The African Democratic Congress has described the continued absence of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, while Vice-President Kashim Shettima is also outside Nigeria, as a dangerous disregard for the Constitution.
The party, in a statement by Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC National Publicity Secretary, said that Section 145 of the Constitution requires the President, when proceeding on vacation for a period of up to 21 days, to transmit a written declaration to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, after which the Vice-President performs the functions of Acting President.
“President Tinubu left Nigeria on 30 August and has now been away for more than 21 days. We therefore demand to know whether the required declaration was transmitted by the President. If he did not, we would like to know why the National Assembly has ignored Section 145 of the Constitution,” the ADC said.
The opposition party also rejected the Presidency’s explanation that the President was on a “working vacation” or that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, would represent President Tinubu at official events, dismissing it as “an absurdity that raises more questions than it answers.”
“Representing the President at events and ceremonies does not confer constitutional powers. The Secretary to the Government of the Federation is a mere appointee of the President. He may attend events or deliver speeches on the President’s behalf, but he cannot exercise the constitutional powers of the President or Acting President,” the party said.
Shettima arrives New York for UN general assembly
Vice President Kashim Shettima is received on arrival in New York by Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Minister of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Deputy Chief of Staff to the President (Office of the Vice President) Senator Ibrahim Hassan Hadejia, Minister of Women Affairs Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, Minister of Solid Minerals Development Dele Alake, Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Jimoh Ibrahim, and other officials.
“Representation is not governance. Attendance at official functions is not presidential authority. Nigeria cannot be governed through ceremonial proxies, telephone calls and press statements issued from foreign capitals.”
The party added that the claim that the President has continued to direct national affairs from abroad only “compounds the absurdity”, saying that a so-called “working vacation” does not remove the President’s constitutional obligations under Section 145.
“There is no constitutional category known as a ‘working vacation’. Presidential authority cannot be transferred by convenience, protocol or press statement. Nigeria is a constitutional democracy, not a private enterprise to be managed remotely from a holiday destination.”
The ADC said it was particularly troubling that the President and Vice-President were simultaneously absent while Nigerians confronted worsening insecurity, unemployment and an unbearable cost-of-living crisis.
In a similar vein, the ADC also described as a “national disgrace” the fact that President Emmanuel Macron of France is in New York attending the United Nations General Assembly, while President Tinubu is vacationing in Paris, the capital of France.
“The irony would be amusing if it were not a national disgrace. At a time when world leaders are advancing their countries’ interests at the United Nations General Assembly, Nigeria’s President is holed up in the French capital while his host has left to pursue his own country’s national interest.
“President Tinubu cannot be vacationing in Paris while President Macron is in New York representing France and expect Nigerians to accept that it is okay for their President to continue to hang around in a country after the host has left to attend to more important things. This is not merely poor optics. It is a national embarrassment.”
The party called on the Presidency and the National Assembly to provide a direct answer to one question:
“Who presently exercises the constitutional powers of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and under what provision of the Constitution?”
The Federal Government has secured fresh commitments from major Chinese power companies and financial institutions to accelerate critical electricity projects and deepen Chinese investment across Nigeria’s power value chain.
The commitments, which cover generation, transmission, equipment manufacturing, renewable energy and grid digitalisation, followed a high-level Nigeria-China power sector mission to Beijing led by the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe.
Tegbe disclosed this in Abuja while presenting his scorecard for his first 100 days in office, saying the government was seeking to move beyond conventional contractor arrangements to partnerships that would bring additional capital, technology and technical expertise into the sector.
Among the companies involved are Sinomach, China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC), China National Electric Engineering Company (CNEEC) and TBEA, alongside Chinese financial institutions.
CMEC has reaffirmed its commitment to the 1.9GW Presidential Power Initiative, with the first transmission lines under the programme expected to be delivered in the first quarter of 2027.
CNEEC, the minister said, is advancing financing of $116 million for the Zungeru power evacuation project, while TBEA has proposed a $500 million industrial park for the local manufacture of power equipment.
The Chinese engagements also cover accelerated development of the East-West Super Grid, the Omotosho-Epe transmission line, cable supply and local assembly, a 300MW distributed renewable-energy programme and waste-to-energy pilot projects.
Tegbe said the government was also working with Huawei on grid digitalisation, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems and technical training.
He said the objective was to ensure that foreign partnerships translated into bankable projects and completed infrastructure capable of delivering measurable improvements to the power system.
The minister’s disclosure comes against the backdrop of the Federal Government’s wider effort to restore financial stability to the electricity market, including the mobilisation of ₦1.23 trillion through two bond issuances to settle verified legacy obligations owed to power generation companies
₦120bn Annual Leakage Blocked
Tegbe also disclosed that interventions along the Ikorodu-Sagamu industrial corridor were expected to block energy theft and related revenue leakages estimated at about ₦120 billion annually.
He said improved billing, collection and remittance remained critical to restoring the financial viability of the electricity market and ensuring that resources generated within the sector were available for continued investment.
The minister said the government was also preparing a new phase of investment in transmission infrastructure, including the proposed Transmission Super Grid and the East-West Grid, while exploring bilateral generation-distribution arrangements to improve the utilisation of existing power assets.
Mambila Project Gets Fresh Impetus
Tegbe said the government’s recent victory in the long-running arbitration over the Mambila hydropower project had removed a major obstacle to the development of the massive scheme in Taraba State.
An International Chamber of Commerce arbitration tribunal in Paris last week rejected claims totalling about $3.38 billion brought against Nigeria by Sunrise Power and Transmission Company in disputes connected with the project.
The minister said the government was now exploring a pragmatic, potentially phased approach to delivering the Mambila project, alongside smaller hydropower schemes that could serve agricultural and industrial corridors.
He identified the next phase of the government’s power programme as one focused on converting agreements and ongoing reforms into bankable projects, additional transmission capacity and infrastructure capable of supporting future electricity demand.
Among the priorities, he said, were the East-West Grid, the Transmission Super Grid, Mambila and small hydropower projects.
Tegbe said the government would also continue to pursue greater private-sector participation in the electricity market, insisting that new generation capacity must be matched by viable demand and infrastructure.
“An inch of improvement is better than a mile of intentions,” he said, quoting Steve Maraboli as he reaffirmed the administration’s commitment to reforming the power sector under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
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