By Adedapo Adesanya
Minister of Power, Mr Sule Mamman, has accused those he described as ‘cabals and untouchables’ of frustrating efforts of the federal government led by President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure Nigerians enjoy electricity.
He said these set of people have been coming up with different campaigns of calumny to discredit the reforms being put in place to make live better for citizens of the country.
In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Communication, Mr Aaron Artimas, the Minister said members of this cabal are sponsoring media publications to rubbish the ongoing reforms in the ministry, including the recent removal of ‘ineffective’ head of agencies under his control.
According to him, these persons, who he refused to mention their names, have continued to alleged that those he removed from office recently were victimised and pushed out because they do not belong to his ethnic group or belonged to a particular gender.
Mr Mamman said the cartel has continued to use different ways to instigate Nigerians against the government through allegations of ethnic, regional, and religious discrimination.
In the statement issued on Monday, the Minister said these people were not specifically happy by the actions taken by government to change the leadership of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) and the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company (NBETC).
The Minister that the unscrupulous elements have claimed that the removal of Managing Director of REA, Mrs Damilola Ogunbiyi; and her counterpart in NBET, Mrs Marilyn Amobi, was a discriminatory movement against women.
According to the Minister, members of this cabal are denying Nigerians the full value of their huge investments in the power sector as they scrutinised every effort to improve generation and distribution of electricity.
“As early as November last year, this cabal began to sponsor insidious reports using some faceless groups in Lagos, claiming that ‘the Ministry of Power was failing under the new minister.
“It is the same ‘untouchables’ who want to perpetuate themselves in power that are now resisting any form of reorganisation meant to reposition the ministry for optimum performance.
“The ministry should not be tied down by individuals whose only concern is the retention of power at the expense of service delivery,” Mr Mamman said in the statement.
The Minister noted that he has prioritised efficient delivery of power to the Nigerians, assuring that he will continue to take necessary steps to better the lives of Nigerians in line with the next level agenda of President Buhari.
Aduragbemi Omiyale 
Modupe Gbadeyanka