SERAP Drags Power Minister, NBET to Court Over Alleged N128bn Diversion, Links Corruption to Grid Collapse

|By Adejumo Adekunle

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has taken legal action against the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, and the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET) over their alleged failure to account for N128 billion in public funds said to be missing or diverted from the Ministry of Power and NBET.

SERAP disclosed that the suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/143/2026, was filed last Friday at the Federal High Court in Abuja. The organisation is seeking an order of mandamus compelling the minister and NBET to explain how the funds were spent or recovered.

In a statement issued on Sunday, SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, linked corruption in the power sector to Nigeria’s recurring electricity crises, noting that the country recently recorded its first national grid collapse of 2026, leaving millions without power.

Oluwadare said the allegations are contained in the latest annual report released by the Auditor-General of the Federation on September 9, 2025, which reportedly raised serious questions about the management of funds allocated to the power sector.

According to SERAP, the lawsuit also seeks a court order directing Mr Adelabu and NBET to publicly disclose the identities, official designations, and offices of all public officers involved in authorising, approving, or facilitating the release of the alleged missing N128 billion.

The organisation argued that Nigerians continue to bear the consequences of what it described as “widespread and grand corruption” in the electricity sector, as persistent grid collapses and transmission failures worsen power supply across the country.

SERAP maintained that granting the reliefs sought would strengthen accountability in the power sector, curb corruption, and help address chronic breakdowns in transmission infrastructure, ultimately improving access to stable and uninterrupted electricity for Nigerians.