Prosper Okoye
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has opposed plans by the federal government to grant a ₦3 trillion bailout to privately owned electricity generation companies, arguing that the move will not resolve the country’s power supply challenges.
In a statement signed by its president, Joe Ajaero, the labour group insisted that the state must remain the primary driver of the power sector. It described the proposed bailout as economically unwise and contradictory.
The NLC highlighted that the entire power sector had been sold for around ₦400 billion, yet the government is now considering providing ₦3 trillion to the same generation companies, which, according to the union, “have failed to generate additional megawatts beyond pre-privatisation capacity.”
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe labour movement also criticised the Association of Power Generation Companies (APGC), accusing it of promoting a self-serving narrative and misrepresenting the demands of organised labour.
“Electricity is a social service, not a commodity to be auctioned to the highest bidder,” the NLC said. “We reject the failed privatisation model, the impudent demand for ₦6 trillion, and this proposed ₦3 trillion bailout. The Nigerian people cannot and will not continue to pay for darkness.”
The union further accused the operators of colluding with those who executed the privatisation to shortchange Nigerians through an opaque process. Responding to the APGC’s press statement on 17 February 2026, which criticised NLC’s competence, the labour group said the association was attempting to justify “a brazen move to loot the public treasury.”
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“First, let us state unequivocally: the NLC stands by every word of our initial statement. The privatisation of the power sector was, and remains, a grand deception and a well-orchestrated robbery of the Nigerian people,” the statement read.
The union added that the APGC’s complaints about “victimisation” cannot conceal the failure of the sector since privatisation, questioning why generation companies that purchased assets for ₦400 billion are now demanding ₦6 trillion.
Prosper Okoye is a Correspondent and Research Writer at Prime Business Africa, a Nigerian journalist with experience in development reporting, public affairs, and policy-focused storytelling across Africa
