By Our Reporter

Amidst declaring him a fugitive, Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, has sentenced former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, to 75 years in prison for corruptly embezzling funds meant for the Mambilla and Zungeru hydroelectric power projects.

The trial judge on Wednesday found Mamman guilty on a 12-count charge and held that the prison terms would run consecutively, bringing the total sentence to 75 years.

Justice Omotosho further ordered that the jail term would begin from the day the convict is arrested.

The judge also directed all security agencies to arrest Mamman wherever he is found.

The court equally ordered that all monies and properties recovered from the former minister be forfeited to the Federal Government, while directing him to refund the outstanding balance from the alleged N22bn linked to the Mambilla and Zungeru hydroelectric power projects.

The case had lingered for years before the judge finally decided to sentence the alleged culprit in absentia.

By Our Correspondent

The privatisation of power in Nigeria has been described as grand deception of Nigerian people by government according to the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), president, Comrade Joe Ajaero.

Speaking at National Union of Electricity Employees’ (NUEE) 2026 annual conference of women and youth in Abuja, the NLC leader accused the government of creating slush funds ahead of the 2027 elections, using the proposed N2tn to N3tn bailout for power generation companies as a ‘ruse’.

Comrade Ajaero, averred that over a decade after the unbundling of the power sector, electricity generation had remained stagnant at between 4,000 and 5,000 megawatts, “the same level as before privatisation.
“A decade after the much-celebrated privatisation, what do we have? Instead of progress, we witness regression. Instead of light, we have darkness.

“The national grid collapses with the frequency of a faulty generator, sometimes plunging the entire nation into blackout. This is not the turnaround we were promised; this is a well-orchestrated robbery of the Nigerian people.”

Ajaero accused distribution companies of persistently rejecting allocated loads from the Transmission Company while Nigerians grappled with frequent grid collapses and soaring tariffs.
The labour leader criticised the privatisation
of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) successor firms as a fraudulent transfer of public wealth to investors who entirely lacked both the technical capacity and financial strength to manage the power assets.

“The so-called investors did not bring fresh capital into this country. They borrowed heavily from Nigerian banks, draining domestic credit and worsening pressure on the naira.
“They acquired DISCOs and GENCOs on a shoestring budget and now expect Nigerian workers to pay for their loans through outrageous electricity tariffs.”

Ajaero further frowned at the band classification system, which categorises consumers into Bands A, B and C based on hours of supply, saying it had become a backdoor mechanism for tariff hikes.

“Band A consumers pay through their noses but still receive epileptic power supply. This government is asking Nigerians to pay for darkness. Banding is the institutionalisation of extortion.
“Electricity is a right, not a commodity to be auctioned to the highest bidder while the poor are left in the dark.”

On the Federal Government’s plan to pay between N2tn and N3tn to generation companies as subsidy arrears, the NLC said there was no justification for “such a massive bailout to private firms that have failed to deliver.”

“The electricity subsidy claim remains a phantom. That N3tn is another ruse and goes nowhere. We see this as a clandestine move to settle the boys as the 2027 elections approach. Every kobo of the treasury belongs to the workers and people of Nigeria.”

The NLC insisted that electricity must be restored as a social service, arguing that no country had successfully run its power sector purely as a profit-driven enterprise without imposing hardship on citizens.
“It is only the State that can bear the huge capital investment required and the long gestation period for returns. The private sector has failed. It is time to take back the power for the people,” he stated.

While acknowledging the provisions of the new Electricity Act that devolved power generation and distribution to states, warned that decentralisation alone would not solve the structural challenges plaguing the sector.
The labour body called for a national stakeholders’ summit comprising workers’ unions, manufacturers and experts to develop what it termed a “People’s Power Roadmap” focused on affordable and stable electricity, public investment in generation and transmission infrastructure, service-reflective tariffs and a reversal of the privatisation model.
“The Nigerian people cannot continue to pay for darkness. When power is not available, it cannot be affordable. Power must be returned to the people,” Ajaero added.

By Saint Mugaga

Former Nigerian Ambassador to Burundi, HE Elijah Onyeagba; DG Citizen and Leadership Center, Rinsola Abiola; Executive Director, Galaxy Backbone Hon Segun Olulade; Former SSA to President Buhari Mr Wole Aboderin; SSA to the President on Community Engagement Southwest, Moremi Ojudu; ED North Central Development Commission, Princess Atika Ajana; Founder of WFM Toun Okewale Sonaiya; SSA to the President on Entrepreneurship Development Chalya Shagaya are among the 170 chairpersons and members of the shortlist committee to review over 1700 applications received from young Nigerians nationwide for the Rising Progressive Young Leaders Fellowship (RPLF).

The Rising Progressive Leaders Fellowship (RPLF) is a flagship and elite leadership development initiative of the Progressive School of Politics, Leadership and Statecraft (PSPLS) – the human capital development arm of the APC National Youth Wing, purposefully designed to produce the best of the best, a new cadre of high value, governance ready young leaders prepared for public sector leadership and national service.

Other committee chairpersons and members includes Mr Bode Olugbore; Hon Ife Adebayo; Dr Sanusi Ohiare; Mr Kingsley Mordi; Barr Zainab Buba Marwa; Mr Abu Andrew; Engr Prof Abubakar Sadiq Zubair, Hon Ginika Tor and more.

According to the APC National Youth Leader, Dr Dayo Israel, the Fellowship targets exceptional emerging leaders with the capacity to contribute meaningfully to governance today, while being deliberately groomed to shape leadership and statecraft tomorrow. It is structured as a rigorous, immersive, and transformational experience that combines intellectual depth, practical exposure, and elite mentorship to prepare the next generation of progressive leaders for roles across the public sector, political institutions, and policy making spaces.

“RPLF is delivered as a high intensity, cohort based fellowship, featuring a residential component that removes participants from everyday distractions and places them in a focused environment of learning, reflection, collaboration, and leadership formation. This immersive model fosters discipline, peer bonding, critical thinking, and a deep appreciation of the demands of public leadership and service in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu”, the APC Youth Leader, concluded.

The Fellowship draws on a distinguished faculty and resource network comprising former governors, former ministers, senior public servants, seasoned legislators, private sector leaders, policy experts, and thought leaders. Fellows benefit from direct interaction with serving and former senior government officials across both the legislative and executive arms of government, providing rare insight into real-world governance, policy negotiation, political leadership, and institutional decision making.

The application review process will commence on Wednesday, January 27, 2026, while further updates on the review exercise and final selection process will be communicated in due course.