The National Civil Society Council of Nigeria (NCSCN) has given President Bola Tinubu and other relevant institutions a seven-day ultimatum to suspend the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Abdulaziz Ahmed Sule, over sundry corruption allegations.
NewMailNG had earlier reported how Ahmed Sule allegedly bought a 2023 Lexus LX 600 model for the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, to perfect his stay in office.
The SUV was procured for N298,444,187.
Sources had also told NewMailNG that Sule bought the vehicle from the internally generated revenue of the company to bribe the minister to ensure that President Bola Tinubu did not remove him from office.
Meanwhile, the call by NCSCN was made in a press statement issued by Blessing Akinlosotu, the council’s Executive Director, describing the TCN boss’ action as insensitive towards what Nigerians were currently facing in the country’s power sector.
Commenting on the development, NCSCN said that over 20 petitions had been brought before the Civil Society Council against the MD/CEO of TCN and a few others directed at the leadership of the distribution companies (DISCOs).
The statement continued, “However, the most alarming is the recent reports concerning bribery allegations against the Managing Director of TCN, Engr. Sule A. Abdulaziz, that he purchased an SUV car to induce the Honourable Minister of Power to influence his retention.
“The most painful aspect of this ugly development for the civil society community is that while the nation is languishing in darkness and epileptic power supply, about 226 containers of power equipment and transformers owned by the TCN are at the various ports in Nigeria.
“Aside from the corruption component in this offensive action, the gross insensitivity and irresponsibility therein is clearly showcased in the fact that this same MD of TCN has been unable to raise and pay up a paltry sum of one billion naira to take delivery of about 226 longstanding containers of power equipment and transformers that are trapped in various ports as a result of the inability of the MD/CEO of TCN to raise the paltry sum of money required to clear and take final deliveries.
“The Civil Society Council is in custody of a letter dated November 7, 2023, with reference TCN/MD/CEO/01/E,001/VOL 7/227/2023 signed by the MD/CEO of TCN himself to the Comptroller General of Nigeria Customs Service, appealing for intervention to cancel the huge demurage and duties that had accumulated up to about N5 billion, of which the Comptroller General graciously obliged, cutting down to only 20%, about N1 billion, in order to help improve electricity supply in Nigeria, yet, despite the goodwill and kind gesture of the Comptroller General of Customs, the MD of TCN is still unable to pay and take deliveries till date.
“We can all imagine the positive impact of 226 container loads of power equipment and transformers on the national grid and electricity supply across the country, instead, the MD of TCN can raise over one quarter of the same amount to buy a car for a minister.
“NCSCN considers this failure to clear and take delivery of the containers of power equipment, the purchase of a car for the Minister of Power, and other violations of the Procurement Act, to be the height of irresponsibility and insensitivity to the plight of the masses, which calls for stiff punitive measures against the MD/CEO of TCN.
“It is in the light of the foregoing that the National Civil Society Council of Nigeria (NCSCN) strongly demands the immediate suspension of Engr. Sule A. Abdulaziz by President Tinubu and an investigation into these allegations by the EFCC, and also that the Honourable Minister Power urgently addresses the Nigerian public on these very important matters.
“The Council hereby issues a 7-day ultimatum starting from today of this Press Conference to relevant authorities [President Bola Tinubu, Minister of Power, Director General, State Security Services, Inspector General of Police, and General Public] to take actions on the above demands, failure to which we shall be left with no other option than to mobilise a mass protest nationwide to drive home our demands. Nigerians can no longer tolerate the excesses of the MD of TCN, and we demand remedies now or never.”