Chiedu Ugbo: Quintessential Public Servant of High Repute

Cliff Chima

He is among that breed of urbane public service officials who Nigeria can boast of who can hold national and international office and do the nation proud. He is not a carnival act but is rather possessed with the will to dutifully serve and not to indulge in filthy lucre. Such individuals usually excel with the brilliance of ideas and sterling performances.

A lot has been said about the free-fall of public service in Nigeria; the selflessness has long gone and personal interests, inefficiency, and vile corruption now reign. Much emphasis by so many is now put on their enjoyment and comforts in the office while the role of truly being a public servant is mocked. Malam Ahmed Joda the ‘super permsec’ of the 1970s and 1980s once said, “The biggest challenge in Nigeria in my view is corruption; it is everywhere. There is no department, no ministry that can be said to be free of corruption. Nobody follows the rules anymore.”

Many public officials are masters of creating a public image of chicanery and venality. Nigeria’s long multifaceted energy sector challenges have persisted despite the availability of vast natural energy resources. Nigeria has the 7th largest natural gas reserves in the world that can be fully utilized to meet its energy needs. What was needed was the technology and investment to unlock and utilize its vast abundance of natural gas, trapped beneath its land. Nigeria has the gas reserves to power its economy; it is not running out of gas. What was needed was an efficient body with considerable discipline and patriotic dedication by its chief executive to put the two together and power Africa’s largest economy.

The Niger Delta Power Holding Company, NDPHC, was thus established with a mandate to implement the Nigeria Integrated Power Projects (NIPP) to fast-track power generation and delivery. Chiedu Ugbo became the Chief Executive Officer of the NDPHC in 2016 when the Nigerian president first appointed him in an acting capacity in June and was confirmed as substantive in August. He is among the few public officials to blamelessly serve their two terms as his tenure was again renewed for another four-year term on August 25, 2020, which has just successfully ended. For eight years, Chiedu Ugbo had to battle near insuperable challenges to run an efficient body, handle its allotted gas, and provide power to avoid a total collapse of the energy sector.

The NDPHC under him conformed to international best practices and surmounted many herculean tasks working to keep the system going. He worked on a well-connected and functioning gas pipeline network predicated on a corresponding uninterrupted supply of gas, to be able to deliver the benefits of energy. A set of additional measures necessary to transform energy into a usable form and transport it to consumption areas compelled him to intervene in the transmission and distribution system while yet going for alternate sources of renewable energy. Therefore, massive transmission and supply lines and processing facilities were built during his tenure despite the continuing huge increase in energy consumption and inherent challenges in the power sector.

Before his stint at the presidency, he was engaged under the USAID Power Africa Transaction and Reform Program (PATRP) as an embedded adviser to the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc(NBET), providing legal support on electric power agreements for different fuel sources and the related credit support documentation.

 Before then, he was a partner at the law firm of Benchmac & Ince, providing legal advice on Electric Power and Infrastructure Development. He also worked as a senior associate and Head of the Commercial Law group at the law firm of George Ikolie & Okagbue. This outstanding executive holds a Bachelor’s degree (L.LB) and a Master of Law (LLM) both from the University of Lagos. He also holds a Diploma in International Law Practice from the College of Law of England and Wales; and a Certificate in Electricity Industry and Restructuring from the Canadian Energy Research Institute, Calgary, Canada. He also has professional certification as a certified regulation Specialist, from the Institute for Public-Private Partnerships, Washington, D.C, U.S.A..There has been a prevalent feeling of dissatisfaction that in the privitisation of Nigeria’s energy assets, that the best investors in the field were not drawn in. Having groups with little international industry expertise may thus have compounded attaining the nation’s energy goals.

According to former Power Minister, Babatunde Fashola, “I could have started by announcing or recommending that the privatisation process should be canceled. I know that cancellation of contracts is not a good signal to send to investors, even if it grabs the headlines, it will be for the wrong reasons. History also tells us that we have revoked, canceled, or reversed previous privitisation initiatives with refineries before and we still haven’t overcome the problem. ”

Chiedu Ugbo had to work within what he met on the ground; pushing through hurdles. The NDPHC, Nigeria’s own Marshal Plan for its energy sector, under him, was actively preoccupied with the optimal utilization of the existing power plants built under the NIPP despite many challenges. Ugbo despite his intellectual fastidiousness and adherence to the application of principled rules was yet very personable. As Managing Director of the NDPHC for eight years, Chiedu, as he is simply called, propelled phenomenal growth at the company, drove many reforms and projects, and made invaluable marks in the generation, transmission, and distribution value chains of the power sector. For a company that supplies more than 35 percent of Nigeria’s installed generating capacity, total darkness would have fallen across the land without the NDPHC.

Ugbo’s preference was for the time-tested official world of moderation and restraint, a legacy from the finest of Whitehall, which helps to keep a nation running smoothly where the recklessness of some with their leisurely air can so easily upturn things. Dedicated public servants like Ugbo prove themselves highly devoted, working off their shoes to make things better for the people that Hannibal trooping through with a herd of elephants would not distract them. Well-groomed through his years of service he turned out to become an effective fixer of situations, uncommonly effective and disciplined with smooth pertinacity.

He stabilised turbulent situations, keeping things from tipping over with the total breakdown of public power.In his quintessential calmness, he adroitly steered the NDPHC and his attitude was said not to be lofty to his staff; neither was he obstinate and an unrelenting snob. In the plenitude of prioritizing fairness and principled rules, he served, never showing the inclination to demand blind acquiescence; zealotry to his person was discouraged but a commitment and loyalty to service was encouraged. Many junior public officials have to put up many times with the somewhat patronizing superiority of their bosses and do their jobs in uncongenial company with those willing to cut them down to size. Chiedu Ugbo is credited to have excelled as a fatherly boss. He was known to conform to the image of efficiency in an environment where many can be out-rightly wicked, incompetent and malevolent. He personifies the seamless integrity of the past, present and future rolled into one and for him, there was no Cromwellian impatience; he was good at doing what he was obligated to do with perseverance.

His straightforward open methods, an unflamboyant way, a workhorse of great dedication with a tireless capacity for getting things done are evidence of his successful eight years in the NDPHC. He was far from the recklessly spending habits; far from the reckless impunity of decision-making by impulses but showed himself solid on rational choices after deliberations with a perceptibility commitment to policy. Ugbo a legal practitioner and infrastructure regulation specialist with extensive experience in advising clients on electric power and gas-to-power, seaport and other transportation modes – including sector reforms, privatization and commercialization, concessions, project development, and off-take agreements has become a definitional figure in Nigeria’s energy sector.

The newly appointed Managing Director/CEO, of the NDPHC, Engr. Jennifer Adighije who took over from Chiedu Ugbo, described him as a man of uncommon leadership capabilities. Speaking during the handover ceremony, Adighije said, “today is a day to celebrate Mr. Chiedu Ugbo who is already whispering to me that he is eager to leave and we are eager to hit the ground running. Mr. Chiedu Ugbo took it upon himself to put me through, to mentor me, to guide me and to put me through his hand-over notes word for word, page by page. He has demonstrated uncommon leadership capabilities. Let me also assure you that you are not stepping away, you are only stepping aside because I will constantly be consulting you and I dare say before everyone in this hall that I will not let you down.”Bowing out, Chiedu Ugbo said. “I would also like to thank each member of the senior management team and staff of NDPHC. Your unwavering support, dedication, and commitment have been instrumental in sustaining the company over the years. Together, we have navigated challenges and fostered a culture of collaboration. I take pride in what we have achieved as a team.”Ugbo as CEO was duly dutiful and pleasant with the lyric freshness of a brook in spring and the overwhelming desire to selflessly serve was his strongest suit.