Headlines
Peter Obi Blames Leadership Failures for National Grid Collapse, Power Crisis
Former presidential candidate, who is also a former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, has attributed Nigeria’s perennial national grid collapse and worsening electricity crisis to persistent leadership failures.
Obi made the remarks in a social media post on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, referencing the latest grid collapse.
He pointed out that the problem has been recurring, with multiple of collapse recorded in 2025, and now the crisis has returned in January 2026.
The former presidential candidate highlighted the long-standing underperformance of Nigeria’s power sector, describing it as unacceptable for Africa’s most populous nation.
Obi noted that for three consecutive years—from 2023 through 2025—Nigeria has been ranked as the country with the lowest access to electricity worldwide, leaving nearly 100 million citizens without reliable power.
What Obi is saying
Obi expressed deep disappointment over Nigeria’s energy situation and emphasized the urgent need for competent leadership in the sector.
“In January 2025, we witnessed the first grid collapse of that year, which was followed by several other collapses. Now in January 2026, the national shame has commenced again with yesterday’s collapse,” he said.
“This power crisis is a direct result of continuous leadership failures. The power sector is critical and requires competent and committed leadership to thrive,” Obi added.
Obi urged Nigerians to prioritise leadership qualities such as competence, accountability, and empathy in future elections.
He stressed that the power sector is crucial for industrialisation, business growth, and improving the quality of life for citizens, and warned that anything less than strong leadership is unacceptable.
Backstory
Nairametrics reported yesterday that Nigeria was plunged into darkness following the collapse of the national electricity grid, marking the first system failure recorded in 2026.
Data obtained from the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) showed that power generation across the country dropped to 0 megawatts (MW) at about 1:00 pm, indicating a total shutdown of the grid.
The collapse triggered widespread blackouts in many parts of the country, with electricity distribution companies forced to shut down supply to customers as a result of the system failure.
What you should know
The NISO says Friday’s nationwide power outage was caused by a system-wide disturbance from multiple 330kV transmission line trips and the disconnection of some grid-connected generating units.
NISO said preliminary findings from its operational assessment point to multiple failures on the high-voltage transmission network, which ultimately destabilised the entire system.
Nigeria’s national grid has experienced repeated partial and total collapses in recent years, raising concerns among industry stakeholders and electricity consumers.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Biodun Oyebanji, winner of the 2026 Ekiti State governorship election.
Oyebanji secured a landslide victory, polling 319,224 votes to defeat his closest challenger, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Dr. Wole Oluyede, who garnered 40,543 votes. The African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate, Dare Bejide, came a distant third with 12,872 votes.
The election, held across all 16 local government areas of the state, was overshadowed by reports of irregularities and widespread allegations of vote buying, drawing strong condemnation from observers.
The official results were announced on Sunday morning by the Chief Returning Officer, Professor Adenike Oladiji, who declared Oyebanji duly elected after meeting the constitutional requirements.
In her declaration, Professor Oladiji stated: “I, Professor Adenike Oladiji, hereby certify that I am the Returning Officer for the Ekiti State Governorship Election held on June 20, 2026, and that the election was conducted in compliance with the provisions of the law. Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji of the All Progressives Congress, having satisfied the requirements of the law and scored the highest number of valid votes cast, is hereby declared the winner and returned elected.”
Source: Reuters
Arise Television anchor, Rufai Oseni, has alleged that there may be attempts to prevent key opposition figures, including Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar, from appearing on the ballot for the 2027 general elections.
Oseni’s remark followed a Federal High Court judgment ordering the de-registration of some political parties.
Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja, on Monday, ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Accord Party (AP), Action Peoples’ Party (APP), Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), and Action Alliance Party (AAP) over alleged constitutional breaches.
The judgment arose from a lawsuit filed by the Incorporated Trustees of the National Forum of Former Legislators (NFFL), which argued that the affected parties failed to meet constitutional and statutory electoral performance requirements necessary for continued recognition as political parties.
Justice Lifu subsequently barred INEC from recognising the affected parties, accepting nominations from them or permitting them to participate in activities related to the 2027 general elections.
The ruling, if upheld, could affect the political ambitions of several politicians, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who is the ADC presidential flag-bearer, and Osun State governor Ademola Adeleke, who is seeking re-election on the platform of the Accord Party.
But speaking on Arise TV’s Morning Show on Tuesday, Oseni described the court ruling as a “test” of public reaction, warning that more actions could follow ahead of the next general election.
According to him, opposition parties such as the African Democratic Congress, ADC, and the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, should be cautious, claiming that efforts could be made to stop major figures from participating in the election.
Oseni argued that the judgment was part of a broader process aimed at shaping the political landscape ahead of 2027.
He maintained that the ruling came despite some of the affected parties having recorded electoral victories in recent elections.
He warned that Nigerians must remain vigilant to safeguard the country’s democracy, stressing the need for judicial reforms alongside efforts to tackle insecurity.
Oseni said: “NDC, ADC should be careful because there will be attempt, and this is me predicting now, to ensure that Obi, Atiku and other big contenders are not on the ballot.
“This that you saw yesterday is just a test. This is not the real place where the whole thing is going. This is me predicting now.
“You know before you have a show you test the microphone. They want to see the reactions of Nigerians. More is still coming.
“You can see how they carry a judgement when ADC won two House of Representatives seats in Kogi, one Kogi House of Assembly seat, APP one chairmanship seat in Jigawa, Zenith Labour party won several seats in Abia, but they still went ahead and issued judgement for deregistration after the Court of Appeal, a higher court, said it should stay on that.
“If we want to deal with this judicial rascality, can I tell you something? The judge that gave this judgment, nothing will happen to him. Nothing on this earth. They are just coming.
“And who is leading this group? Gbajabiamila. Have you forgotten what Gbajabiamila said on Hon Ajibade’s birthday? So they are just coming. This one is just a test. The next one they will do is the NDC.
“With the way they’re going, if Nigerians don’t shine their eyes when they will finally have this election, you will not have the major contenders in the ballot. This thing they have just done is to test reactions from Nigerians.
“I saw this thing coming. You know we are going into an election in which Atiku Abubakar is the only major candidate from the North. It’s not like the last one you have Kwankwaso that can split the Kano votes. And you have Peter Obi and general consensus that a lot of people are in abject penury, insecurity is raging hard.
“This is the beginning of many things. They are just testing the microphone. It’s engineered. More is coming. Nigerians, it is you that will save your democracy. Judicial reforms have become so important as insecurity in Nigeria.”
