Court stops NERC from increasing electricity tariff June 1
(Nigeria) A Federal High Court in Lagos on Thursday restrained the Nigerian
Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, from implementing the new electricity
tariff which was to take effect from June 1.
The Judge, Justice Mohammed Idris, gave the order, in a
ruling on an ex-parte application by a Lagos-based lawyer, Mr Toluwani Adebiyi.
Idris restrained the NERC and the electricity distribution
companies from effecting any increment in electricity tariff pending the
hearing and determination of the suit.
Adebiyi, who argued the ex-parte application, had urged the
court to restrain the NERC and the electricity distribution companies from
implementing such plans to avoid further hardship and unjustifiable tariff
increment on Nigerians.
Chairman of NERC, Dr Sam Amadi, had, at a news conference in
Abuja, announced plans by the Commission to implement the upward review in
electricity tariff from June 1.
However, Idris, after entertaining arguments from Adebiyi,
ordered the NERC to maintain the status quo of the substantive suit till the
hearing of the suit.
The judge ordered that the motion and other processes in the
suit be served on the NERC.
Idris also granted leave to the applicant to serve the
originating summons, the affidavit in support, list of exhibits and the written
address on the defendant in Abuja, which is outside Lagos judicial division of
the Federal High Court.
The judge also adjourned the suit to June 11 for hearing.
Adebiyi, in the suit, is seeking an order restraining the
NERC from implementing any upward review of electricity tariff without a
meaningful and significant improvement in power supply at least for 18 hours in
a day in most communities in the country.
He also wanted an order restraining the NERC from foisting
compulsory service charge on pre-paid meters not until "the meters are
designed to read charges per second of consumption and not a flat-rate of
service not rendered or power not used."
He also wanted the service charge on pre-paid meters not to
be enforced until there is visible efficient and reliable power supply like
those of foreign countries where the idea of service charge was borrowed.
Adebiyi is also asking for an order of the court mandating
the NERC to do the needful and generate more power to meet the electricity use
of Nigerians.
He added that the needful should include and not limited to
a multiple long-term financing approach, sourced from the banks, capital
market, insurance and other sectors of finance to power the sector.
The lawyer is also asking the court to mandate the NERC to
make available to all Nigerians, within a reasonable time of maximum of two
years, pre-paid meters as a way to stop the throat-cutting indiscriminate
estimated bills and which must be devoid of the arbitrary service charge, but
only chargeable on power consumed.
In an affidavit in support of the suit personally deposed to
by the applicant, the lawyer lamented that despite the motto and mission of
NERC which were expressly stated as "keeping the light on and to meet the
needs of Nigeria for safe, adequate, reliable and affordable electricity".
He said that most communities in Nigeria do not get more
than 30 minutes of electricity supply, while the remaining 23 hours and 30
minutes were always without light and in total darkness.
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