Nigeria: Tinubu Goofs Again, Says Communications Minister Disconnected Phone Numbers From National Electricity Grid

By Emmanuel Nduka

Presidential hopeful and stalwart of Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) Bola Tinubu has suggested that Nigerians were disconnected from the national power grid in one of several controversial comments he made during a recent campaign stop.

The former Lagos State Governor was at Onikan Stadium on Sunday with thousands of his supporters where he lamented Nigeria’s moribund power infrastructure.

“And yet we started disconnecting from NIPP our phone numbers,” Mr Tinubu said in an apparent mix up of electricity and phone infrastructure.

Tinubu outrightly mistook the NIPP which is an acronym for the National Independent Power Project, for the National Identification (NIN)

Nigeria’s Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami had disconnected millions of Nigerian phone lines over claims that they weren’t enrolled by the national identity database. According to the Minister, the measure was to curb insecurity.

Tinubu had said previously during one of his recent campaigns towards 2023 that he has a better idea for fixing Nigeria’s acute power challenges, adding that the incessant national grid collapses could be traced to previous governments’ failure to accept his advice.

Mr Tinubu, however, failed to correct himself before the audience that electricity generation and mobile phone networks are different.

The former governor’s mixture of both systems marks another instance of his embarrassing public statements, which experts said could signify mental health challenges.

It would also be recalled that last year, the 70-year-old politician suggested that the Nigerian military recruit 50 million youths to fight unemployment, a statement his handlers later walked back.

Earlier this year, he was caught on camera appearing to urinate on his body. He also said the permanent voter cards have an expiry date, contrary to public knowledge and the position of the Independent National Electoral Commission.

His age and source of wealth has been subject of public controversy as some politicians who have known him for decades past insist he should be in his 80s and not 70s as he’s officially claiming.

But he has insisted that he is in good health and can govern 200 million Nigerians successfully if elected President.