In one of the most bizarre twists in Nigeria’s long-running power saga, the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, has revealed that some citizens are now pleading with him to reduce electricity supply, because their freezers are working too well.
Tegbe dropped the bombshell on Wednesday in Abuja while commissioning a 3-megawatt solar hybrid project at Yakubu Gowon University. According to him, communities that previously spent up to three months in total darkness are now enjoying as much as 18 hours of daily power.
“Some areas called me to say, look, I should slow down, that everything in their freezer is freezing,” Tegbe said, adding with a laugh: “That is what freezer is meant to do. Let it freeze the food that needs to be frozen”.
The minister said the turnaround followed interventions he promised during his Senate screening, where he pledged visible improvements within three to six months. He, however, admitted that much of Nigeria’s power infrastructure is over 40 years old and is being systematically replaced.
But not everyone is laughing. Atiku Abubakar’s media aide, Paul Ibe, fired back, saying the comment exposes a government disconnected from reality. “It hears freezers freezing. Nigerians hear generators roaring,” Ibe said, noting that diesel has crossed N2,000 per litre and electricity bills are devouring household incomes.
Tegbe also disclosed that vandals recently brought down three major transmission towers in Birnin Kebbi, prompting a joint EFCC-police-NSCDC committee to guard power assets.For now, the minister’s message is simple: Nigerians should let their freezers freeze, and stop asking him to slow down.