The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) is allegedly battling to pay its salaries despite the $500 million its former Managing Director, Dr. Usman Gur Mohammed, left in the coffers of the government-owned firm.
This Nigeria news platform understands that the erstwhile Chief Executive Officer, in an interview with The Nation yesterday, said the fund, which his management team raised from Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) was allegedly grossly mismanaged.
According to him, he also left some concessionary funds in addition to the $500 million.
Efforts to speak to TCN’s Public Affairs General Manager, Ndidi Mbah, were unsuccessful as calls made to his phone were unanswered while the Whatsapp message sent to him also failed to elicit a response at the time of filing this report.
Mohammed said: “But, by the time I left TCN, apart from the concessionary fund I left, I left almost $500 million from the IGR that we set.
“And we did salary increase for TCN staff cumulatively from the time to the time I left close to 10per cent.
“Yet, we were able to save about $500million. But now because the place is not properly managed, go there and you will find out that they are struggling to pay salaries.”
He recalled that he requested an extraordinary tariff increase from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) that was never approved for the TCN.
Mohammed noted that despite the failure to secure the tariff review, he was able to manage the concessionary funds of the company and saved the huge IGR aside from the regular payment of salaries.
The former TCN boss, who said the challenges in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) were not as bad and surmountable as they appeared, noted that the government only needed competent hands to manage the sector.
