Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has vowed to abolish Nigeria’s five-band electricity tariff system, accusing President Bola Tinubu of failing to fulfil his campaign promise to provide Nigerians with steady electricity.

Atiku said the existing tariff structure imposes additional hardship on households and businesses, who continue to pay higher electricity bills despite unreliable power supply.

In a statement issued by Phrank Shaibu, spokesperson of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, the former vice-president accused the Tinubu administration of celebrating policy announcements and financial interventions without delivering corresponding improvements in electricity supply.

“The APC should spare Nigerians the spectacle of celebrating paperwork while homes and businesses remain in darkness,” Atiku said.

Atiku’s criticism followed Dele Alake’s defence of Tinubu’s electricity record, arguing that the president’s campaign promise had been quoted out of context and should be assessed alongside interventions such as the Electricity Act 2023 and the presidential metering initiative.

The ADC candidate faulted the five-band tariff structure, which categorises electricity consumers into Bands A, B, C, D and E, with varying charges across distribution companies.

“Yet across every band, the same hardship endures: the power fails, but the bill arrives,” he said. He cited charges of about N209.50 per kilowatt-hour for some Band A customers before value-added tax.

Atiku pledged to work with state governments and regulators to replace the arrangement with a fair, transparent and affordable framework that protects consumers and holds electricity companies accountable.

“No family should have to weigh the cost of electricity against the cost of food. No business should be left to pay more while receiving less,” he said.

He also challenged Tinubu to account for his 2022 campaign pledge that Nigerians should not re-elect him if he failed to provide constant electricity within four years.

Atiku further criticised the administration’s multitrillion-naira bond programme to settle legacy debts owed to power generation companies, arguing that settling outstanding obligations was not equivalent to building new generation infrastructure.

“Paying old debts is not the same as building new power infrastructure. Bonds cannot be presented as a substitute for power in people’s homes,” he said.