Ambassador-designate Reno Omokri has responded to questions regarding a campaign statement attributed to President Bola Tinubu on electricity supply, stating that he has not personally seen the remark and emphasizing structural limitations within the power sector.
Omokri spoke during an interview on Channels Television on Wednesday, March 4, 2026, when asked about a statement credited to the President that, “if I don’t provide it, don’t vote on it, don’t re-elect me.”
Responding, Omokri said, “I’m going to say this now. I haven’t seen that. But let me just say, because I have confidence in you, so let me take your word as true. But I’m going to tell you something there.” He suggested that campaign statements may differ from governing realities. “When he said that, maybe he was contesting. Maybe he wasn’t in government, so he didn’t know what was in government,” Omokri stated.
Drawing from his experience in a previous administration, he added, “I was in government under President Jonathan. The Nigerian power industry or power sector has been privatized. So there is very little the president can do.”
He further explained the structure of the sector. “The only part that has not been privatized, and it must be privatized if you go by the roadmap to power sector reforms, is the transmission,” he said.
According to him, campaign pledges are subject to institutional constraints. “So if a president comes in, I mean, if a presidential candidate comes and says that, OK, well, I’m going to do this, I’m going to do this, I’m going to do this, he is limited by what he can do,” Omokri stated.
When asked whether Nigerians should excuse a promise that may not be feasible, he responded, “First and foremost, I have to see what the president said so that I can accurately litigate that.”See_More…