‘I’ve since learned there was no collapse’ — Peter Obi retracts comment on national grid

Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate in the 2023 elections, has retracted his earlier statement regarding the national grid collapse reports.

Media reports had said the national grid collapsed on Saturday, leading to a blackout across parts of the country.

Reacting to the reports in a post on X, Obi expressed concern over the state of Nigeria’s power infrastructure, saying the grid collapsed 12 times last year.

He said the disruptions caused significant setbacks and hardships for households and businesses, describing the impact as immeasurable.

But in a statement, Ndidi Mbah, general manager of public affairs of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), said the national grid did not suffer collapse.

Mbah said the incident was a mere power tripping at the Benin-Omotosho 330 kilo volt (kV) line.

In response to the development, Obi clarified that his initial comments were based on reports from “reputable media platforms,” and subsequent information revealed the incident was not a grid collapse as earlier claimed.

“Following my earlier message regarding the alleged collapse of the National Grid, which was based on reports from reputable media platforms, I have since learned that there was no such collapse,” Obi said.

“Instead, the incident involved the tripping of the Osogbo-Ihovbor and Benin-Omotosho lines, which affected the Lagos axis.”

Obi also commended the transmission company for promptly addressing the matter and providing clarity on the situation.

The former governor of Anambra state, however, called for greater efforts to improve the country’s power infrastructure to meet the growing needs of over 200 million Nigerians.