Femi Gbajabiamila, speaker of the house of representatives, on Friday said one of the reasons the increase in electricity tariff will be consented to by the house of representatives was if there’s a corresponding improvement in power supply.

Gbajabiamila made this known while expressing is concerns over the increase in electricity tariff on his Twitter handle.

Gbajabiamila also said such an increase must also be done only after the bill criminalising estimated billing has been signed into law.

He averred that such increment must be cost-reflective, and not another avenue to extort electricity consumers.

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) had announced a review of the multi-year tariff order (MYTO) 2015 and the minimum remittance order (MRO).

Following the directive from NERC, electricity distribution companies (DisCos) said from April 11, they will adjust their tariffs upwards, a breakdown earlier reported by TheCable.

A lot of Nigerians decried the planned increase, but the presidency said the matter was not under the control of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Gbajabiamila said there was no guarantee that after the tariff hike, the distribution companies will not “continue with the nefarious practice of bills estimation or provide uninterrupted power supply”.

“I believe @nassnigeria (national assembly) should ensure that any increase in electricity tariff if at all should be cost-reflective and not just a whimsical increase with no empirical basis,” he added

“Also, any such increase should only be made after the proposed amendment to the law criminalizing estimated billing is signed into law.”

The speaker added that he intends to meet with the attorney-general of the federation and other relevant authorities to discuss the conditions and how to resolve the issue.