Nigeria’s Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, is expected to resign from the cabinet of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ahead of a March 31 deadline for political appointees seeking elective office in 2027.
The directive, issued by Tinubu, requires all ministers, aides, and appointees with political ambitions to step down in line with provisions of the Electoral Act. Adelabu, who has declared his intention to contest the Oyo State governorship election, is among those affected.
A source within the Ministry of Power confirmed that the minister is preparing to leave office before the deadline. “He is ready to bow out; I can authoritatively tell you this. His immediate goal is the Oyo Governorship 2027,” the source said.
Efforts to get an official response from Adelabu’s spokesperson, Bolaji Tunji, were unsuccessful, as calls and messages were not returned as of the time of filing this report.
Adelabu’s impending exit means he will leave office without meeting his self-imposed target of increasing Nigeria’s electricity supply to 6,000 megawatts. Current generation figures remain significantly below that goal, with about 3,331 MW distributed to electricity distribution companies as of Tuesday.
Nigeria’s power sector has continued to struggle with persistent challenges, including gas shortages and mounting debts. In recent weeks, generation companies shut down several gas-fired plants over unresolved legacy debts estimated at over N6.8 trillion, worsening blackouts nationwide.
Despite earlier projections to achieve the 6,000 MW target by 2025, the goal has remained unmet, underscoring the deep-rooted issues in the country’s electricity sector.
